 
The Amazing Adventures of Princess Peridot

By Lynne Roberts

Published by Liberty Publications at Smashwords

Copyright 2014 Lynne Roberts

ISBN 978-1-927241-09-7

Smashwords Edition, License Notes  
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author
Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12
Chapter 1.

Once upon a time, in the far off kingdom of Sarscabel, there lived the Princess Peridot. Actually, there lived a lot of other princesses as well, seventeen of them in total. They all had the same father, King Balthazar, but all had different mothers.

When King Balthazar married his first wife, Queen Vashti, everyone in the kingdom rejoiced. She was a young and beautiful princess from a neighbouring kingdom, and in their first year together she and Balthazar ruled wisely and well. They were a very happy couple and the king was delighted when his wife gave him the glad tidings that they were about to have a child. No expense was spared in decorating and preparing the royal nurseries and every effort was made to ensure that the baby would be showered with gifts and good fortune when it finally arrived. King Balthazar had his advisors draw up forecasts predicting the fortune his son would have, for he was certain the baby would be a boy. Everyone in the kingdom looked forward to the day of the baby's birth, as the king had promised to provide extensive feasts and gifts of gold coins to all his subjects. But no man, even a king, can control Fate. And Fate decided that the baby was not in fact a boy, but a girl.

'You have a beautiful daughter, Sire,' the court physician informed the king nervously, as he entered the anteroom where the king had been awaiting news of the birth.

'What?' bellowed the king in amazement.

'A daughter. She is very beautiful. Fair of skin and dark of eye,' stammered the physician. In fact the princess, like all babies, was red faced with crying and looked beautiful only to her doting mother, but the physician decided it would hardly be tactful to point this out.

'A daughter!'

King Balthazar was taken aback. He could not believe that that this had happened to him. Never before, in the course of his pampered life had something gone so expressly against his wishes.

'A daughter!' he said again in disgust. He duly inspected his child and was even less impressed. He recoiled in horror at the suggestion he should hold her and stood looking down at his wife with barely concealed annoyance.

'Itzy, bitzy baby, then. She is so sweet,' cooed his wife, as she stroked the fine downy hair on her daughter's head. 'What shall we call her?'

'Call her what you like,' snarled the king, losing his temper completely. He had a list of boys' names already chosen but had given no thought to any girls' names.

'I'll call her Ruby,' murmured Queen Vashti. 'She is a precious jewel to be treasured.'

If she hoped to convince the king of this she had badly misjudged her husband. He was furious. He snarled at his advisors, threw a boot at his valet and stormed off to his hunting lodge in a right royal sulk. In an effort to drown his sorrows he broached a cask of wine he had been keeping for a suitable occasion and spent the next three days getting disgustingly drunk.

At the peak of this drunken spree, while he was still able to stand and before he became so fuddled he couldn't see straight, he convinced himself that it was all his wife's fault.

'She must have secretly wanted a girl and that's what did it,' he mumbled to himself, with a fine disregard for the principles of reproduction. 'She knew I wanted a son and heir. It's not fair. It's all her fault.'

He glared at the unfortunate serving man who refilled his wine cup with a trembling hand. The king drained the cup in one swallow.

'What's more,' he went on moodily, 'She'll probably do it again if I give her the chance. What I need is another wife, one who wants a boy as much as I do. Isn't that right?'

He turned to the serving man, who backed away hastily and nodded in agreement.

'That's what I thought.' The king hiccuped gently. 'Another wife. That's what I need. My own father had seven of them and my Uncle Aleric had fourteen. The more I think about it, the more certain I am that I need another wife. Well?' He frowned at the serving man who quickly changed his snort of surprise to a cough.

'You are right of course, your majesty,' he murmured.

'Of course I'm right. I'm the king.'

King Balthazar sipped his wine slowly then thumped the cup down on the table with a crash.

'I'll do it,' he decided. 'I'll take another wife.'

'What, now?' The serving man was ill advised enough to remark.

'Yes, now. What's wrong with now? Now is a good time.' King Balthazar was pleased. Things were moving at the right speed for him. 'Bring me a wife,' he commanded.

The serving man looked the king in amazement. 'Er...' he began nervously.

'Now, I said,' thundered the king. 'And bring me something to eat while you are at it.'

The serving man bowed and backed his way out of the room.

'What do I do?' he wailed, as he explained his predicament to the kitchen staff.

A couple of the young serving girls began to giggle, but the cook was made of sterner stuff.

'Tell him he is being totally unreasonable,' she said firmly, as she deftly chopped an onion and tossed it into a simmering pan of stew.

The serving man gulped. 'I know he's being unreasonable,' he said gloomily, but it's hopeless trying to tell him anything when he's in this sort of mood. Oh, and he wants some food as well.'

'That, at least, is no problem. Take him a slice of pie to go on with, and tell him the meal will be ready in another hour.'

The cook sliced a large wedge of a meaty pie topped with golden pastry. She slid it onto a napkin and handed it to the serving man as an assistant hurried up with a small platter. The serving man heaved a sigh and returned to the king, who ate the pie with evident enjoyment before looking expectantly up at his servant.

'Well, then? Where's my new wife?'

The serving man coughed. 'Er, there doesn't appear to be anyone suitable in residence, Sire,' he explained. 'There is no one of royal birth nearer than the kingdom of Talasiar, and that is a three day ride from here.' Three days ought to be long enough for him to sober up and change his mind, he thought.

The king was furious. 'I want a wife now,' he thundered, leaping to his feet and grasping the unfortunate serving man by the front of his tunic. 'Royal be damned. There must be some females in this cursed place.'

'Only the cook and some serving girls,' croaked the serving man, whose eyes were beginning to bulge as his face turned purple.

The king released his grip and rubbed his hands together. 'Bring me the wench who made this pie, she'll do,' he ordered.

The serving man scuttled from the room and into the kitchen, scattering the kitchen maids who had been listening at the keyhole.

'He wants you to be his wife,' he gasped to the startled cook.

'Does he now?' The cook snorted. 'Thinks he can order a wife the same way he orders a cup of wine, does he?' She took off her apron and patted her hair into place. 'Right! That king has a big surprise coming.'

She marched purposefully into the dining room, followed by the gaggle of kitchen maids, and stopped abruptly. King Balthazar was striding around impatiently and he was a magnificent sight. Tall and broad shouldered, with eyes gleaming and dark hair tossed back from his noble brow he turned to face her. It would have taken a stronger woman than even the cook not to have been impressed. Even the drink had done no more than give him a heightened colour, and he seized the work roughened hand of the cook and took it in his.

'Ah! My new wife,' he said with a chuckle, pressing the hand to his lips.

The cook started to protest but she could see that nothing short of unconsciousness would divert the king from his intentions. As she had an understandable reluctance to walloping her lord and master with a rolling pin, she had no option but to listen in horror as the king made his announcement.

'I, Balthazar, in the presence of these witnesses, do take you – what's your name?'

'Desiree,' whispered the cook.

'Take you, Desiree as my royal wife and consort. There, that's it. All legal, and above board.'

The cook's heart sank. She knew with rising panic that she was now officially the king's second wife. She gave the manservant an anguished look but he fixed the table leg with a stony stare and avoided her eyes. The cook was a practical young woman and decided that there was nothing to be done but to make the best of things. Fixing a smile on her face she took a seat beside her new husband and commanded the kitchen maids to serve the dinner.

By the time the king had finished the cask of wine and enjoyed the feast that his new wife had prepared, he was ready to retire.

The next day saw him with a terrible hangover, a newborn daughter and two wives. Some men may have found this a trifle daunting but King Balthazar took it all in his stride. But a year later, when the cook gave birth to a daughter, his rage was indescribable.

'I'm calling her Pearl,' Queen Desiree murmured lovingly, as she nursed her tiny child.

'Think of it as two gems in your crown, Sire,' the royal physician suggested. He retreated quickly as the king showed signs of murdering anyone foolish enough to come close to him.

This, alas, was the last straw for the king. He had quite enjoyed having two wives. The meals in the palace had improved dramatically and by keeping his first wife quite separate in a newly built extension to the palace, he had managed not to think about her or his daughter. But two daughters were too much. He promptly gave an order for his second wife and child to be housed in a yet another addition to the palace, to be built immediately. Then he rode off with those unfortunate members of his retinue who hadn't had the forethought to arrange grandmother's funerals or other good reasons for not being around when the baby was born.

Chapter 2.

Over the next few years, King Balthazar married a third wife, then a fourth and fifth, as each in turn gave birth to a daughter. In despair he married the sixth and seventh wives together in an effort to change his luck, but the outcome was the same. Jade, Coral, Sapphire and Amethyst joined Ruby and Pearl in the royal nursery. The royal builders were kept busy constructing more and more extensions to the palace to house these wives until one brave advisor suggested that they should all live together.

'You could have a woman's quarters, my Lord,' he said sensibly. 'And another one for the children, enclosed by a walled garden where they could play.'

He couldn't quite bring himself to say girls, as this was not a word calculated to improve the king's temper.

The king agreed to this absentmindedly, as he studied the portraits of prospective brides. By this time he was secretly rather enjoying the reputation he was earning through his eccentric behaviour, although he still craved a son. By marrying new wives he never became bored with the old ones, although a few of them showed alarming tendencies to complain if things weren't to their satisfaction. In fact, keeping the wives from squabbling among themselves and carrying tales to the king about each other, kept a small staff of advisors extremely busy. The wives were given everything they asked for and a more spoiled group of women would have been hard to find. Everything, that is, except freedom. There was a large walled garden for the wives to walk in and pick the flowers, but the palace gates were guarded night and day by strong young men whose job it was to keep the wives in and intruders out. Few people were admitted to the palace grounds where the wives lived, apart from a succession of travelling vendors with baskets of perfumes, fine fabrics and other ornamental objects.

By the time Princess Peridot was twelve, there were a total of seventeen princesses, with the arrival of the latest, baby Zircon. At this time the king received a message from his first wife, Queen Vashti, by the hand of the palace scribe, that it was time to be thinking of marriage for their daughter Ruby. This gave the king quite a start. It dawned on him with increasing delight that he was eventually going to have seventeen sons-in-law. If anything, this would be better than having sons. There wouldn't be the challenge for the throne for starters. He could appoint whomever he wished to inherit when the time came and in the meantime he would have a strong contingent of sons-in-law to send off to do any necessary conquering of neighbouring countries or other threats to his kingdom. King Balthazar decided not to marry any more wives for a while. In truth, he was feeling his age rather and the thought of venturing forth in search of a bride was becoming a lot less attractive than that of relaxing in a warm spot and being entertained by the dancing girls.

King Balthazar decided that any prince wishing to marry a daughter of his had to prove his worth. Ruby's suitors cleared the kingdom of dragons, wolves and even a few inoffensive sheep before one lucky prince was declared the winner. Prince Valentine bore his new bride off to a neighbouring country where they set up home in happily wedded bliss, with Ruby coming home to visit her mother and sisters every second Saturday.

The palace was overflowing with visiting princes looking for ways to impress Princess Pearl, when Peridot looked up from her needlework one day and cried, 'I'm sick of all this!'

'Sick of what?' asked Amber.

'All this.' Peridot gestured around her. The sisters were in the solarium where a vast stained glass dome soared high above their heads, spreading multi-coloured shafts of sunlight onto the tapestry hung walls. Groups of scattered cushions nestled beside velvet lined gilt benches to form areas for sitting, while a severe middle-aged woman sat in supervision behind a small table by one of the large arched windows.

'You mean sewing?' Amethyst arched one delicate eyebrow. 'It's because you try and rush things. Your stitches are too big. If you made small, even ones like mine it would look a lot better.' She smiled complacently as she held her work up for her sisters to admire. Amber dutifully made suitable noises as she glanced at the cream silk, where a bright green and gold dragon curled protectively around a clutch of speckled eggs.

'I don't mean needlework,' objected Peridot, 'although I'm sick of that as well.'

She scowled at her grubby piece of linen where what looked like a deformed elephant was stumbling beneath the weight of an urn of unlikely looking flowers. 'It's a complete waste of time. Why do we need to know how to sew? We are never likely to make our own clothes or anything, the royal dressmakers do all that.'

Amethyst was shocked. 'It's traditional. When we marry we must take something we have sewn to our new homes. It's expected of us.'

'I think it's a stupid tradition,' muttered Peridot.

'All our mothers have sewn things. Well, most of our mothers,' Sapphire amended, with a sideways look at Peridot.

'Oh I know my mother never sewed anything. I don't blame her. It's boring.'

Peridot's mother had been one of the lesser wives. She had been a dancer in a waterfront tavern when the king was drowning his sorrows after Amber's birth. Even though he had married her, she gained the distinction of being the only wife King Balthazar had divorced. Peridot's mother had been extremely headstrong and hadn't taken lightly to being discarded and expected to live in the company of the other wives. She had left when Peridot was four years old and apart from the occasional birthday gift, Peridot hadn't seen or heard from her since.

'So what's boring?' Topaz asked. She was two years younger than Peridot and was rather inclined to be in awe of her. Peridot was never afraid to say what she thought, something Topaz would never have dared to do.

'Everything. Life is the same here day after day. It's boring.'

'No it's not,' objected Amber. 'There are heaps of princes around looking for things to do to impress Pearl, or rather, our father.'

'Oh, princes!' Peridot flapped her hand dismissively. 'There's not even any danger for them to rescue her from now. Father's making them hold chess tournaments instead. Chess! What use is that to anyone?'

'Chess is good for training the mind for war strategies,' put in Coral, overhearing this last remark as she fetched an errant ball of silk that had rolled from her lap.

Peridot sniffed. 'There's not much chance of a war around here. Father has married wives from every country this side of the mountains and there's nothing left to conquer except the Wasteland, and not much point in that.'

Coral would have liked to disagree with Peridot on principle but was forced to admit she was right. 'You might as well make the best of things, Peridot, and accept life the way it is.'

'Not if I can help it,' muttered Peridot.

She managed to conceal her impatience for the next half hour, during which time she pricked her finger twice, knotted her thread so badly that it had to be cut off the needle, and managed to stitch her sampler to the hem of her tunic. By the time Peridot had unpicked ten minutes worth of stitching she was furious. Tossing her work aside in relief, she walked rapidly in the direction of the walled garden.

'Do you want to play ball with me?' asked Topaz.

'No. Leave me alone,' snapped Peridot.

Topaz turned away, her shoulders drooping. Period immediately felt guilty for being so bad tempered.

'I don't want to play ball but you can come with me to the garden if you like,' she offered.

Topaz cheered up and skipped alongside Peridot as she headed to the garden. They descended a flight of stone steps as fast as they dared. Lessons in Deportment were a major part of the princesses' lives and moving faster than a walk was frowned on as not being suitable, although the younger girls found this a very hard rule to stick to.

'I'm sick of all this. I'm sick of being a princess,' muttered Peridot, narrowly avoiding a collision with Dinsala, one of the king's advisors, who was carrying a pile of scrolls in the direction of the king's chambers. He staggered back, the silver tassel on his skull cap swinging wildly. She shot him an apologetic look which he returned with a smile, as the princesses made their way to the far end of the garden where a rather ugly looking stone lion spat a trickle of water into a small mossy trough.

'Being a princess is boring,' Peridot scowled, as she moodily kicked at a clump of fern fronds growing from the base of a wall beside the trough.

'At least we have plenty to eat and we don't have to work,' Topaz offered in reply. 'You wouldn't like being a camel rider. Think of how hot and dusty you would get.' She shuddered dramatically.

'It would be fun, though,' said Peridot dreamily. 'At least you could go wherever you wanted to and see all sorts of strange sights around the world.'

Topaz privately thought that camel riders were probably no more free to organise their own lives than were princesses, but she wisely held her tongue.

'Even being hot and dusty wouldn't be as boring as this,' sighed Peridot. She kicked at the clump of ferns again then kicked even harder, and almost slipped, as her foot met no resistance. Dropping to her knees, Peridot peered behind the ferns and was astounded to see a hole under the wall where a couple of the stones had been removed.

'Look at this, Topaz,' she squeaked.

Topaz knelt beside her and together they peered into the hole.

'I wonder where it leads to,' Topaz breathed.

'I'm going to find out,' said Peridot, as to her sister's horror she bundled up her skirts and crept nearer the hole.

Chapter 3.

'You'll get dirty,' protested Topaz.

'Who cares about a bit of dirt,' scoffed Peridot. She pulled the ferns aside and examined the hole critically. 'This must be here so that people are able to get to the water pump for the fountain to clean it out,' she said excitedly.

Even though the hole was small it looked more than possible for an agile princess to crawl though it. No sooner had she thought this than Peridot wriggled through and found herself in the main palace gardens. A plaintive wail came from the other side of the wall and Topaz waggled an anxious hand through the gap.

'Where are you?' she called.

'I'm just here. I'm in the main gardens. Come on, come through and have a look.'

There was a muffled 'ouch' as Topaz crawled cautiously through the gap in the wall. She jumped to her feet and looked around her in awe. These gardens were extensive. A series of walls and archways led around ornamental ponds and neatly clipped shrubs. Towering trees cast welcome shade over drifts of lush plants, while the tinkle of water came from marble fountains set in carved niches in the stone walls. Peridot and Topaz were enchanted. They explored the outer garden thoroughly, making sure that they kept out of sight of any of the queens or other residents of the palace who were likely to wander there. Both girls had been here before in the company of one or other of the queens who were keen on gardening, but as they were apt to lecture the princesses on the habits of the flowers that were currently in bloom this was inclined to be tedious. But to be here by themselves with no adults was bliss. Peridot reveled in the opportunity to toss carefully chosen twigs into the rippling stream and run across little bridges to see if she could catch them on the other side. Topaz picked exotic flowers, with a hasty look over her shoulder to see if anyone had noticed, then floated them on the surface of still ponds or tossed the petals into fountains to see them flung into the air among clouds of spray. The princesses considered climbing one of the spreading trees that sheltered a small mosaic courtyard but Peridot regretfully decided that their skirts would be too hampering.

A trickling pipe of bamboo gave a mournful note before it filled the dipper below it to tip up with a splash into the clear pool below it. They tried to find that inlet to see if they could alter the flow of water and change the note but all they succeeded in doing was getting rather wet.

'I'm going to sit here in the sun and get dry,' Topaz decided, spreading her skirts out on a patchy of green velvety grass in a sunny alcove. 'How about you?'

'No way. There's heaps to see yet.'

Peridot left her sister contentedly sunbathing and ventured down a dark tunnel of tightly growing flowering vines. Emerging at the other end she was delighted to see a small sparkling stream trickling over smooth grey pebbles before widening out into a large pool fringed with irises and reeds. Deciding that such a hot day called out for paddling, Peridot removed her sandals, with a guilty look around in case she was observed, then waded up to her ankles in the stream, squealing with the shock of the cold water. A run across a patch of carefully tended herbs by a sundial soon had her feet dry again and she walked on through a spreading arch of lime trees to find that she was back almost where she had started from.

'I guess we'd better go back now,' she said regretfully to Topaz.

'Can we come again?' her younger sister asked eagerly.

'I don't see why not. We'll have to be careful not to get caught, though and you're not to tell anyone else about it.'

'Not even Beryl?'

'Especially not Beryl. She's too young,' said Peridot firmly.

Topaz was so delighted not to be considered young herself, that she agreed to this with a solemn nod. 'I promise,' she said earnestly.

The girls crawled back though the hole and dusted their clothes down. Peridot 's green clothing didn't fare too badly, but the deep yellow that Topaz wore showed several green grassy stains. Topaz was a little dismayed at this but Peridot advised her to go and change quickly, knowing that the servants would not dare to question or comment on why any of the princesses clothes were dirty. They pushed the ferns back to conceal the opening, leaving it almost the way it was when they first spotted it. It was as well they did, for a few minutes later Amber and Amethyst came walking along the path towards them.

'What have you been doing? You are both filthy!' Amethyst cried.

'We've been playing a game,' said Peridot haughtily.

'You'd better go and wash,' Amber sniffed. 'We don't want you in our room looking like that.'

'We were just going to the pools now,' said Peridot untruthfully, and taking Topaz by the hand she led the way to the Bathing House.

Over the next few weeks, Topaz and Peridot thoroughly explored the outer garden. However this garden too, was walled, and one day when Topaz was playing tea parties with Beryl, Peridot ran around it by herself. She was feeling frustrated after a particularly boring lesson on the History of the Kingdom and was in no mood to be confined.

'It's all too perfect and tidy,' she wailed. 'It's boring, boring, boring.'

Peridot flung herself onto a garden bench in an overgrown alcove, which was overdue for a good pruning, and frowned at her reflection in the fishpond by her feet. A few goldfish nosed the surface hopefully but swam away in disgust when they realised they were not going to be fed.

'What I'd like to do is to be an ordinary person for a change. I'd like to go out and explore the town and not have anyone know who I am.'

The more Peridot thought about this, the more she was convinced it would be a good idea. Her only experiences of the town had been the restricted sight through the curtains of a litter when she and her sisters were carried to the temple for one of the regular ceremonies there. The last time had been for Princess Ruby's sacrifice to mark her wedding. All her sisters had watched as Ruby pricked her delicate finger to allow three drops of blood to lie on the sacred stone. A lot of tedious chanting followed for what seemed hours. Along with the heat was the smell of heavy perfumes and incense, which made Peridot feel quite headachy and sick. But the litter ride had given her glimpses of a different world. Cheeky urchins dodged around heavily laden mules and camels as the shopkeepers spread their entrancing wares in the bazaars.

Peridot thought long and hard. She knew there was no way anyone would give her permission to leave the palace, particularly to venture out unattended. She also realised that she would be spotted instantly for what she was in her royal attire.

'I need clothes,' she muttered thoughtfully. 'Peasant clothes, not stuff like these.' She kicked off one of her golden sandals and flung back the ends of the silky stole around her shoulders.

As Peridot sat swinging her feet, she heard a hastily muffled cough and she spun around to see one of the gardeners on hands and knees, attempting to back out of the archway behind him. He froze as Peridot spotted him and his face went white. He was clutching a trowel that he had obviously left behind and come to retrieve.

'It's all right,' said Peridot irritably. 'I won't tell anyone I saw you.'

The gardeners were instructed to do their work in the hours after sunrise before the members of the royal household were up and about. The penalty for being seen by any of the females of the palace was instant dismissal at the very least. This was the result of an unfortunate incident several years earlier. One of the gardeners had made the mistake of speaking to one of the queens, and not only that, but offering her his arm to assist her over a slippery stone bridge. The temerity of this behaviour was relayed to the king immediately by one of the serving girls who received a gold piece for her pains. The king ordered the gardener to be whipped and insisted his wives and daughters be present to view the punishment. Peridot still remembered the swish and crack as the whip flailed the back of the young man, and his agonised screams. She had been violently ill afterwards and woke screaming from nightmares for weeks later.

The effect on the other gardeners was just as traumatic. They knew what would be in store for them if they dared to go near a princess, which is why Peridot found the skinny young man before her trembling in terror.

'It's all right,' she reassured him. 'I truly won't tell.'

The gardener rolled his eyes frantically and began retreating.

'Wait,' commanded Peridot, as a sudden thought struck her. 'Do you know where I could get some clothes? Normal person clothes, not stuff like I wear?'

The gardener shot her a bewildered look and cringed away.

'I want some peasant clothes,' said Peridot slowly and clearly. 'I want to go into the town so that no one can tell I'm a princess. Can you help me?'

The gardener shook his head quickly.

'You must be able to help me. Surely you've got something old that you've grown out of? That would be even better. No one would bother about a boy.'

The gardener looked appalled then went even paler as the voice of Amber came clearly from the other side of the wall.

'I know she's here somewhere. Peridot, where are you hiding?'

'She's probably sulking,' Amethyst remarked.

'Cow,' muttered Peridot under her breath. 'Look, I'll go and distract them so they don't know you've been here. But if I do you must promise to get some clothes for me in return. Will you do that?'

The gardener nodded frantically.

'Good. You can leave them here under the seat. It doesn't look as if anyone comes in here very often.'

Peridot gave the gardener an encouraging smile and skipped through the archway. She wriggled through the hole in the wall and joined her sisters rather breathlessly. Fizzing inside with suppressed excitement, she agreed to play a sedate game of bowls with them, something she would have scorned at any other time.

Chapter 4.

The anticipation of a real adventure cheered Peridot up for the rest of the day. She decided that the best time to go would be straight after breakfast in three days time. This would be a Hallow Day, when the princesses had no activities organised for them. The adults would go to the temple to participate in various ceremonies, depending on the time of year, but the princesses were expected to use the time to reflect on ways to improve their lives. Most of them chose instead to go to the Bath House, where they soaked in the warm scented water of the pools before being massaged with fragrant oils. Others would spend their time in the nursery wing with Noni and the babies or visit their mothers for a chat or advice.

'If I go on Hallow Day no one will wonder where I am and I will have a whole day to spend all by myself,' Peridot reasoned. She decided not to tell Topaz of her plans, as she had no faith in her little sister's ability to keep such an awesome secret. 'Besides, she'd only want to come too, and that wouldn't work at all,' she told herself.

Hallow Day dawned fine, and Peridot walked confidently in the direction of the pools, then when she was sure no one was watching she slipped down a series of passages, into the inner garden where she wriggled though the hole in the wall. She ran eagerly though the outer gardens. They were deserted, as there was still a quantity of dew on the grass and the sun was not yet warm enough to encourage walking there. To Peridot's delight the gardener had not failed her. Beneath the seat was a tidily folded pile of clothes; baggy trousers, a long striped shirt in brown and cream cotton and even a length of rather faded blue cloth to bind her hair in as a turban.

With a quick glance around, Peridot stripped off her stole and found the shirt was big enough to slip on over her tunic and skirts. The trousers were far too big and she tossed them back under the seat in disgust. She added her bracelets and veil to the pile and wrapped the turban around her head, securing it rather untidily with a brooch from her stole. She looked at her golden sandals and frowned, but decided that the shirt was long enough to cover most of them.

'Although I suppose I should go barefoot, really,' she told herself. A few steps were enough to convince her that this was a bad idea and she slipped her sandals on again quickly.

'Now I'm ready,' Peridot announced cheerfully, then realised with a sudden shock she had no idea of how to leave the palace grounds. 'The guards are bound to ask questions if I try to go out the main gate,' she thought, 'but there must be another way in and out. I'll have to explore.'

Peridot walked around the garden, growing increasingly frustrated as each walled courtyard opened to reveal urns of flowers or marble statues but no door to the outside. Finally she stopped in frustration beside an ornamental pear tree, which drooped silvery branches down to form a bower beside the wall. Ducking underneath, Peridot grasped the trunk and began to climb the tree. A few breathless minutes later she was at the top. To her joy, she found that her guess had been correct. The top of the wall was in easy reach, and with a little clambering she managed to climb on top of it. The descent was a little less elegant, as there proved to be few handholds in easy reach. Peridot ended up slithering the last part of the way to land with a bump on the side of a dusty road. She could see the towers of the town buildings in the distance and set off down the road in good spirits.

After an hour of walking, Peridot was not feeling quite so joyful. The long shirt was itchy and smelled faintly of camphor. She would have liked to have taken it off, as she was far too hot with her other clothes underneath, but she didn't dare.

'I wish I had a drink,' muttered Peridot. 'I should have brought a flask of water and I should have put some nougat or figs in my pockets.'

She viewed the road dismally. It seemed to stretch on forever and there were no handy serving girls to arrive when she clapped her hands, only the occasional dusty group of travellers who ignored her as they moved past. This was at least interesting for Peridot. There were young boys idly whacking stones with their sticks as they drove scrawny goats before them. Others led plodding donkeys on the end of short frayed ropes. There were rich merchants carried in litters by strong, sun-bronzed slaves or riding astride well-groomed horses, which contemptuously flicked up clouds of dust as they passed. Once a group of young women walking past, balancing amphoras of oil on their hips. They giggled as they shot glances at Peridot. She held her head high and hoped her hair wasn't showing beneath her turban.

When she had walked for what felt like hours, Peridot was delighted to see a cluster of buildings set back from the road. Deciding she would see if she could get a cup of cool water from the well, she made for the nearest dwelling which appeared to be some sort of barn attached to a mud brick house. There was no one around, but beside a group of straggly trees, Peridot could see a long stone trough of water. Even though she realised that this was probably for animals to drink out of, Peridot was too thirsty to care. She dipped her face in the water and drank her fill. The water was cool with a slightly muddy taste. She splashed her hot face and washed her dusty hands before setting off again down the road. She hadn't gone more than a few paces when she heard a squealing sound coming from the thicket of trees. Following the noise, Peridot came to a small clearing that was obviously used as a rubbish dump. Tangles of wheels and ropes were mixed with heaps of wilted cabbage stalks and stable sweepings. Peridot was about to turn back, away from the horrible smell, when the squealing came again. Pinching her nose with the fingers of one hand, Peridot picked up a stick and poked it at a mound of filthy straw. The squealing grew louder, and using the stick she pulled back the rubbish to reveal a small, rather grubby pink pig, which was thoroughly tangled in a length of old rope. With a sigh, Peridot bent down and tied to untie the rope.

This was no easy task, as the piglet kept wriggling and pulling the knots tighter. She persevered and with a final yelp the piglet shot free, nearly sending Peridot headfirst into the rubbish pile as it ran past her. Muttering to herself, Peridot returned to the water trough and washed as best she could, drying her hands on the long shirt which was by now looking decidedly the worse for wear. She set off down the road and hadn't gone more than a few paces when she realised that the small pig was following her.

'Shoo. Go back,' she told it sternly.

The pig snuffled and looked up at her trustingly.

Peridot raised her voice. 'Go away. Go home.'

The pig sat down and regarded her with interest.

'Oh, come on then, if you must,' sighed Peridot as she turned around again. The road forked here and she had a choice. She could head directly for the town or take a much cooler path through a grove of olive trees.

'I'm going to the town,' said Peridot grimly, and plodded on.

A few minutes later, a motherly woman who was taking crates of chickens to sell in the bazaar gave her a lift in a cart.

'Selling the pig, are you?' commented the woman, as she clucked her tongue at her old mule.

'Maybe,' muttered Peridot. Her spirits rose as they neared the town and she was soon chattering with the woman.

'What's your name, young man?'

'Peri.'

'Well Peri, if you're wishing to sell that pig, you can't do better than to try Abdullah at the kebab stall. He pays a fair price. Not a lot, mark you, but fair.'

'Thanks,' murmured Peridot, with a guilty look at the small pig that was nestled trustfully beside her in a pile of hay. The mention of kebabs made her hungry, and she gratefully accepted an orange that the woman offered her and ate it greedily as they approached the town.

As they entered the bazaar, the noise was so great Peridot could hardly hear herself think. The shouts of vendors mingled with the jingle of harness, the wail of pipes from the snake charmers and the rhythm of drumbeats coming from a small group of entertainers. Everyone seemed to shout, and the braying of donkeys and the shrill honking of geese punctuated the commotion. With a smile of thanks, Peridot slipped down from the cart with the pig under her arm for safekeeping, and set off to explore.

Peridot walked past a stall where large baskets of spices tingled her nose and made her sneeze. There were bolts of fabric in shimmering lengths displayed at the next stall and a crowd of woman of all ages fingered them and chattered to each other about the clothes they could make. Peridot groaned at the thought of sewing, and stopped to watch a snake charmer. He played his pipe slowly, swaying from side to side. From a small round basket in front of him, the head of a snake appeared. It too swayed from side to side and Peridot found herself swaying in sympathy. The pipe music was hypnotic and she shook herself with a start and walked on, averting her eyes when the snake charmer gave her an indignant look for failing to toss a coin at his feet. A small boy was selling cups of goat milk, but the cup looked none too clean and Peridot wrinkled her nose fastidiously. It didn't seem to worry the small queue of people lining up for a taste but Peridot decided she would have to be desperate to drink it. She conveniently forgot that she had drunk from an animal trough herself, not long since.

'Pots and pans,' bellowed a voice, and she dodged to one side as a portly man pushed past her. He had brass pots of every shape and size tied to a large harness around his shoulders and he jangled as he walked. 'Pots and pans,' he bellowed again, as Peridot giggled and ducked around a corner.

There, several jewelry booths caught her eye and she lingered beside them. The walls of the booths were hung with copper and gold chains while counters held trays lined with dark velvet to display rings and brooches. Peridot looked longingly at a gold filigree brooch set with sparkling emeralds that would have been just the thing to clasp on her cloak. The stallholder gave her a contemptuous look as she asked the price.

'More than you can afford, you young scoundrel. Be off with you.'

Peridot was affronted. She was about to tell the stallholder who she was when she realised that she looked nothing like a princess.

'I guess this is what happens to ordinary people,' she muttered, feeling all at once that having an adventure was not particularly comfortable.
Chapter 5.

Peridot moved on past the next stall, where bowls of warm hummus were being sold with hunks of crusty bread. Next to this was a small cart where an old man was selling chunks of nougat, and Peridot's mouth watered at the sight. The pig was becoming rather heavy by this time and was struggling to get to the food. Peridot put it on the ground where it followed closely behind her as she wandered through the bazaar. She realised with a slight shock that she had no money and therefore no way of purchasing anything.

'I should have kept my bracelets for trading,' she thought wistfully, as the smell of newly baked bread wafted past her. She lingered by a carpet vendor, to admire the skill of his two young daughters who were weaving a mat patterned in rich blue and red. There was a sudden shout. The sight and smell of the food had been too much for the pig, which had pushed its snout into a basket of dates and was gobbling down a large and sticky mouthful.

'Hey! You'll have to pay for that. You owe me three sertisis,' the stallholder accosted Peridot angrily. He glared at her, his black moustache quivering in anger.

'I don't have any money. Besides, it's not my pig,' replied Peridot indignantly.

The pig promptly moved to Peridot's side where it nuzzled her lovingly and sat down.

'Oh, yes,' sneered the stallholder. 'A likely tale. Come on, three sertisis. Hand them over.'

Peridot was dismayed. A small crowd had formed and there were angry mutters from the surrounding stallholders. No one liked a thief, and Peridot knew well that the punishment was likely to be severe for such a crime. She looked around in desperation but all the faces, which had appeared to be friendly a few minutes ago, were now unpleasant and threatening. Peridot thought frantically. She had nothing that was worth anything with her except the brooch that was pinned to her turban. It was a beautifully worked gold brooch in the shape of a P that Peridot had been given as a small child. With a pang she realised that she would have to exchange it for money or she was going to be in real trouble.

'You'd better have this in payment,' Peridot croaked, unfastening the brooch from the front of her turban and hoping the whole thing wouldn't fall off her head. She proffered it to the stallholder who grasped it quickly and put it in a pocket in his coat.

'That will do. Now be off with you.'

'Just a minute,' protested Peridot. 'It must be worth more than three sertisis. It's made of gold.'

'Oh yes, and where would an urchin like you get a real gold clasp from?' laughed the stallholder. 'Here.' He tossed a small copper coin to her. 'One sertisi for change. Can't say fairer than that.'

Peridot opened her mouth and shut it again. She couldn't tell him who she was and she had a sinking feeling that there would be trouble over the missing brooch. With a heavy heart she turned away.

'And it's not even as if I got any food out of it,' she informed the pig, which had found some disgusting scraps beside a stall and was munching contentedly. 'I guess I'll have to go home again.'

Peridot's spirits plummeted at the thought of the long walk back to the palace, but she told herself sternly that even an adventure like this was preferable to listening to Pearl and Jade comparing suitors or talking about weddings. She briefly contemplated selling the pig, but regretfully decided that it really wasn't hers to sell.

'And I don't think I could bring myself to eat pork sausages ever again, if I did,' she sighed.

The droning of a pipe signalled the hour of prayer and the stallholders hurriedly began covering their booths with canvas covers as the crowd moved away in the direction of the temple. Peridot fought against the flow of the crowd and soon found herself on the outskirts of the town. With a sigh she started walking down the road, the pig trotting behind her.

Passing a tree that spread a welcome patch of shade over the road. Peridot was surprised to see what appeared to be an old heap of rags suddenly rise up to reveal an old woman. She cried out and reached for Peridot's hand.

'Fortunes told. Fortunes told. Cross my hand with silver and I'll tell your fortune.'

Shrewd black eyes peered at Peridot above a tatty black veil.

'I don't have any silver,' Peridot told her kindly. 'I only have one sertisi.'

Before she could say that she was intending to use that to purchase an orange from a vendor further down the road, the old woman had grasped her arm with thin withered fingers. The old woman had a surprisingly strong grip and Peridot weakly handed over the coin as she saw how thin she was.

'She probably needs the food more than me,' she thought guiltily, remembering the huge platters of food that were prepared for the princesses each day, and how they would pick at them and send most of the food away uneaten.

The old woman tucked the sertisi in her bodice then took Peridot's hand and peered intently into the palm. She gave a shrill cackle of laugher.

'Oh, you have a lot of excitement before you, my dear,' she croaked. 'Your life holds many unexpected turns before it is through.' She muttered to herself in a strange language then looked at Peridot again. 'You'd better go home, my dear. This is not your place,' she advised. Spotting the pig she cackled again. 'Oh that Saladin. I'd recognise his work anywhere. You must have upset him badly to end up like that.'

'What are you talking about?' asked Peridot in bewilderment.

'That pig. He's no real pig. He is a prince. He carries the signs of a bewitchment by the wizard Saladin. You'll have to find a way to set him free or he'll have a hard job avoiding the butcher. He's fattening up nicely.'

With a chortle, the old woman hobbled off towards the town gate, while Peridot stood aghast, watching her.

'Are you really a prince?' she asked the pig.

The pig grunted and nudged her in the leg with its wet muzzle.

'But that's terrible,' exclaimed Peridot. 'I have no idea what to do now.'

She puzzled over the pig's predicament as she trudged back along the road to the palace. Her suffering seemed negligible to that of the pig and the journey passed quickly.

Arriving back at the wall she had climbed that morning. Peridot looked at it in dismay. How was she to climb back over it, and what was worse, get the pig over it? She was hot and sweaty and caked in dust and her mouth felt as dry as the dirt beneath her scuffed and worn sandals.

'Can I help you?' put in a voice.

Peridot spun around to see the gardener regarding her shyly. He was wearing a shirt only slightly better than the one he had left for Peridot, and his large brown eyes regarded her soulfully.

'Oh, it's you,' she cried in relief. 'Thank you for the coat, or rather, shirt. It has been great but I need to get back into the palace and I found this pig only apparently he's really a prince in disguise or rather been enchanted and I don't know what to do. And I'm so hungry,' she ended on a wail.

The gardener gave her a grin. 'Life's a bit different outside the palace, isn't it?'

'Why are you talking to me? I mean, you wouldn't even look at me before? I don't even know your name.'

'My name's Ravid and it's different out here. Here is where I belong and in there is where I work.' The gardener jerked a thumb towards the palace. 'I can't talk to you in there or they'd have my head. But I can do what I like out here.'

'What are we going to do about the prince?' asked Peridot, as the pig snuffled around her feet.

'I can look after him for you, if you like. My house is only a short distance away. Then you can find a way to disenchant him or whatever it is that's needed.'

'That would be great,' cried Peridot in relief. 'Can you help me back over the wall? I'll leave your clothes under the seat but I can't use them again until next Hallow Day. But if I come up with any ideas before then I'll leave you a note under the seat. Er, you can read, can't you?'

'Of course I can read. Just because I work in the Royal Garden doesn't make me a complete idiot,' Ravid said indignantly.

'Why do you work there?' asked Peridot curiously.

'The money is very good and I'm saving to buy my own piece of land. I'm going to grow olives and oranges one day. Now put your foot here in my hands and I'll give you a boost up.'

Ravid clasped his hands together as he spoke. Peridot took a deep breath and put one dusty sandal firmly on top of them. The gardener, who was a well-muscled young man, heaved her up beside the wall where she was able to grasp a tree branch and pull herself over.

'Thanks heaps,' she called breathlessly, as she landed with a rustle of leaves on the soft grass below. Pulling off her turban, she bundled it under the seat with the shirt, and thankfully replaced her bracelets. She could feel her hair standing wildly around her face so she wrapped her shawl over it and arranged her veil modestly over her face, thankful for something to disguise her rather sunburned nose. The sandals were ruined, so Peridot shrugged and tossed them under the seat as well.

She made her way to the Bath House where she was fortunate to find it deserted apart from Garnet and Moonstone who were lying in the shallows pretending to be mermaids. Peridot dived into the cool water, something that was normally frowned upon by the bath attendants, who were idling in the adjacent courtyard sipping iced tea. Peridot had a brief but extremely wet game with Garnet and Moonstone where she was the crocodile chasing the mermaids, before she gave herself over to the slave girls to be dressed and groomed again.

Shiraz, one of the bath attendants, was a favourite of Peridot's, and she brought a clean change of clothes for her without comment. Peridot giggled as Shiraz fixed a large turquoise in her belly button and gratefully stuffed down half a dozen sweet pastries stuffed with almonds and honey.

'Do you wish your nails painted?' Shiraz inquired. 'I have a new silver gilt here that would look beautiful on you.'

'Why not,' sighed Peridot, reclining on the silken cushions in relief and enjoying being pampered.

That evening as she sat with her sisters watching the lights of the town twinkling in the distance, Peridot admitted to herself that there was a lot to be said for being a princess.

'But I must do something about that pig prince,' she thought, as she yawned and made her way to bed.

Chapter 6.

Peridot decided to find out everything she could about spells and enchantments. She began with her older sisters. Pearl and Jade listened impatiently as they sorted through a sheaf of fabric samples for wedding gowns.

'I don't know anything about it at all,' said Pearl airily, when Peridot had asked her what she knew about magic spells. 'No, not that one Jade. It would make your skin look sallow. Why not stick to the deep green you usually wear?'

'But I like it,' protested Jade. 'Do go away, Peridot, can't you see we're busy?'

'Oh, you're no help at all,' fumed Peridot. She turned to leave and almost bumped into Coral, who was carrying a tray piled high with jewelry.

'Watch out, Peridot,' she cried sharply. 'I've borrowed this from my mother and she won't be impressed if the chains get tangled up. What are you doing here, anyway?'

'She wants to know about magic,' muttered Jade, pouncing on the tray with a squeal of glee.

'Magic?'

'Yes. Do you know anyone who can work magic or undo magic spells?' asked Peridot.

Coral frowned. 'Old Nalasid makes up potions for coughs and fevers and I've heard that the serving girls go to her for love philters. But I've no idea whether she can actually work magic or not.'

'Thanks, Coral. That's somewhere to begin, anyway.'

'You won't be able to go and visit her,' Coral warned. 'You'll have to get her to come to you if you can.'

Peridot smiled and ran back to her own quarters where she scribbled a note to the gardener.

How is the pig prince? I need to get hold of Old Nalasid. Any ideas? Peridot

She folded the note and tucked it into her pocket then strolled out to the garden where she looked around quickly before wriggling through the hole in the wall. She ran to the secluded alcove and reached down to put the note under the seat. 'I hope Ravid thinks to look there,' she muttered, before making her way back to the Solarium where Sapphire was entertaining the little princesses with songs.

Peridot checked under the seat the next day and found the note gone but heard nothing more until three days later when one of the serving girls came to find her. Peridot was playing a game of Mancala with Sapphire. They each had a wooden board inset with ivory cups containing heaps of coloured pebbles, the mancala cup being the largest and most intricately decorated. Garnet watched with interest as Sapphire and Peridot vied with each other to be the first to collect the most stones.

'What is it?' Peridot asked. 'Bother, Sapphire. You've got another one of mine now.'

'You need more practise. There now I've won!'

'You always win. Oh, what is it? Hurry up. We're going to start a new game.'

The serving girl bowed deeply. 'Old Nalasid is here to see you, your highness. She is waiting in the Western Courtyard.'

'Great. I'll come at once.'

'What about our game?' called Sapphire, as Peridot leapt to her feet.

'Can't stop,' flung back Peridot. 'Find Amber, she's got nothing to do.'

'She's no good, she's even worse than you are,' grimaced Sapphire, as she watched Peridot walk as fast as she could towards the courtyard.

'I'll play,' said Garnet eagerly.

'Oh well, I guess I could teach you,' sighed Sapphire, sorting out the pebbles evenly between them as Peridot disappeared in the distance.

Peridot ran up the steps to the archway leading to the Western Courtyard and stopped with a gasp. Old Nalasid was a daunting sight. She had a hawk like face with a large beaky nose and jet-black hair pulled tightly behind her head in a knot decorated with a large silver tassel. She wore a collection of robes and drapes in shades of blue, and she arched an enquiring eyebrow at Peridot.

'You commanded my presence, your highness?'

'Well, I didn't exactly command,' began Peridot, feeling flustered. 'But I'm glad you came.' She looked sideways at the serving girl who was staring woodenly ahead and pretending not to hear. Peridot was sure that this was only a pose and that her request would be the talk of the woman's quarters before the evening. With an inward sigh she went on, 'I need to know how to break a magic spell.'

This did not faze old Nalasid. She looked calmly at Peridot and asked, 'What sort of spell?'

'Oh, it's not for me,' Peridot said hurriedly. 'It's for a sort of friend of mine. He has been enchanted into a different shape and I need to know how to undo it.'

'If he is a frog, then kissing him will do the trick,' drawled Old Nalasid.

Peridot gulped. The thought of kissing the pig was revolting.

'He's not a frog,' she faltered.

'Then I have no idea how to break the spell,' said Old Nalasid calmly. 'Spells are individual, you know. They usually have to be undone by the person who has cast them.'

'I think that was Wizard Saladin.'

'Then that's who you must ask. Good day.'

Old Nalasid turned to leave as Peridot frantically caught her arm.

'Please tell me where I can find Wizard Saladin?'

Old Nalasid gave a frosty smile. 'You will never find him if he doesn't want to be found. But you may have a chance if you go to the Hiring Market. Even wizards need apprentices and I believe Saladin goes through his apprentices rather rapidly.' She swept away regally, as the serving girl hastened to open the large iron gate for her.

'Thanks,' said Peridot despondently. 'Now I'll have to find out about the Hiring Market,' she muttered as she left the courtyard.'

She had the bright idea of asking Shiraz about this when she next went for a massage.

'The Hiring Market?' squeaked Shiraz in horror. 'Oh, your highness, am I not doing a good enough job. Have I offended you in some way?'

She cast herself to the ground and kissed Peridot's foot, much to her acute embarrassment.

'Get up, get up. It's not for you. I think you do a wonderful job,' Peridot assured her. 'No. It's just that I was wondering how it worked, that was all.'

'Oh,' cried Shiraz in relief. 'That's easy. It's held every third moon on Hallow Day at the Blue Square by the temple.'

The Blue Square was named after the blue painted tiles that formed an intricate mosaic courtyard in the town centre. More of these blue tiles adorned the walls of the houses and buildings surrounding the courtyard until even the faces of the townspeople took on a slightly blue tinge with the reflections. The Blue Square was often used as a meeting place for various groups and Peridot had glimpsed it once from her litter on the way to the temple for a ceremony. She counted on her fingers and was delighted to find that the next Hiring Market would be in a few weeks time and she determined to get away alone again.

Peridot was better prepared for her trip to town the second time. She wore a quantity of gold bangles pushed up her arms, reasoning that she could exchange some for sertisis if need be. It was necessary to do this, as money was something that princesses had no access to and no need for. She also managed to slip some extra bread and olives into a napkin at breakfast time, to sustain her on the long walk to town. Ravid, or more likely his mother, had washed the shirt and replaced it beneath the seat in the garden for her and this time Peridot had brought a pin to secure the turban. She found the climb over the wall a lot easier this time, as she found Ravid waiting to catch her as she climbed over. The pig was nowhere to be seen.

'I left him at home,' Ravid told her. 'I figured he would only be in the way wherever you went today.'

'I'm going to the Hiring Market,' Peridot said firmly. 'I have to find Wizard Saladin to ask him to take the spell off the pig prince.'

Ravid looked alarmed. 'Are you sure that's wise?' he asked doubtfully. 'Wizard Saladin is very powerful and he doesn't usually do what people ask. Quite the opposite in fact.'

'It's the only way,' Peridot explained. 'I feel responsible, somehow. Anyway, it will be an adventure.'

'I'll come with you,' Ravid said quickly, thinking that despite her determination, there could be all sorts of perils in store for a young princess such as Peridot.

They walked companionably towards the town. The journey went far quicker with someone to talk to and Ravid knew a shortcut that followed a small stream and made for much more pleasant travelling. They rested beneath the shade of a crumbling stone wall and Peridot shared her bread and olives with Ravid who ate it gratefully.

'He's rather thin,' thought Peridot critically, eyeing his bony hands and feet and noting the speed with which he devoured the food.

Ravid caught her eye and grinned. 'Ready to go? The market will be starting soon.'

Peridot climbed to her feet. 'How does it work?' she asked.

Ravid spent the remainder of the journey explaining the working of the Hiring Market. Anyone wishing for employment would show up carrying the tools of their trade, such as a spade for a gardener, a ladle for a cook or strip of leather for a sandal maker. They would stand on a central dais in the square where employers would walk around inspecting them before approaching one of the scribes with an offer. The scribe would haggle until an agreement was reached that suited both parties, whereon he would quickly fill in a written contract, receiving a fee for his services. Peridot listened to all this carefully.

'If I hang around the square long enough, I'm sure to spot Wizard Saladin,' she said cheerfully.

Ravid wasn't quite as confident but could see nothing wrong with this plan.

The Blue Square was crowded when they arrived. Men, women and children of all shapes and sizes chattered as they ascended the steps to the dais, while around the edge merchants and landowners strode importantly, making muttered comments to each other about their prospective servants. There was no sign of anyone who looked like a wizard but Ravid assured Peridot that it was still early.

'It goes on all morning so he'll probably turn up later,' he said encouragingly. 'Let's find a place in the shade to sit and watch.'

They squeezed onto a step in the corner of the temple, half-hidden behind a large column decorated with carved snakes. From there they had a good view of the proceedings. Peridot watched in fascination as a group of serving girls giggled together while an elderly matron inspected them carefully. After an hour or so the novelty began to pall and Peridot stripped off one of her bracelets and handed it to Ravid.

'Take this and exchange it for some sweetmeats,' she suggested

Ravid looked at the bracelet doubtfully.

'It's okay,' Peridot said reassuringly. 'It's mine. I can do what I want with it. Do you think it will be enough for some sherbet as well? I'm awfully thirsty.'

'This will be plenty,' nodded Ravid, and threaded his way through the crowd in the direction of the food stalls.
Chapter 7.

Ravid was gone for a long time, and Peridot was starting to become concerned when she saw him running towards her.

'Here, take these.' He thrust a packet of Turkish Delight and a small flask of sherbet into her hands. 'I have to go. A big red haired man with a beard came up and wanted to know where I got the bracelet. He thinks I've stolen it.'

'That will be the Captain of the Guard,' said Peridot, recognising the description. 'You don't want him to catch you if you can help it. You'd better keep out of his way and head for home.'

'Will you be all right on your own? You can come with me if you like.'

'I'll be fine. I'm going to see Wizard Saladin and ask him about the spell then I'll meet you beside the wall.'

A sudden shout made Ravid turn pale and he slipped quickly through a group of small boys and disappeared. Peridot ate the Turkish Delight and sipped the sherbet. The sun was now a lot hotter and was beating down into the corner where she sat. Peridot decided to stretch her legs and walked out into the square.

'This way, this way,' said an impatient voice, and a large man with gold rings in his ears beneath his large orange turban took hold of her arm.

'Let me go,' she said coldly, but the man took no notice, and pulled her up the steps and onto the dais.

'You are very late but there is still time,' he muttered.

'Time for what? Oh! You think I'm here to be hired. Well I'm not...' Peridot faltered to a stop as the crowd suddenly hushed. A tall man dressed in black and silver strode to the middle of the square and cast a searching gaze over the dais. He had dark skin and dark hooded eyes above a long thin nose. His lips curled disdainfully as he surveyed the few people left, and then he shot out a bony finger at Peridot.

'You. Come with me,' he commanded. He tossed a coin at the waiting scribe and turned away. Peridot went weak at the knees. This must be the Wizard Saladin. She started to protest that she wasn't for hire but subsided as the wizard glared at her.

'I guess this is one way I can get close to him to ask about the spell,' she reasoned, as she hastened down the steps to follow the wizard, who was now striding away out of the square.

Peridot followed behind, panting to keep up as the wizard led the way though narrow alleyways and through a bewildering labyrinth of streets. Finally he reached a tall house of dark stone that was jammed between a bakery on one side and what looked to be some sort of stable on the other. Placing his palm on the door, the wizard pushed it open and beckoned to Peridot to enter.

She stumbled inside, finding it hard to adjust her eyes to the darkened room after the bright sun outside. The wizard reclined gracefully onto a large pile of cushions on one side of the room and Peridot stood rather hesitantly in front of him.

'Er, I was wondering...' she began.

'You were not asked to speak,' said the wizard dismissively. He took a piece of parchment from a pocket in his robe and began to study it. A few minutes passed in silence.

'Um, excuse me, but I need to ask something,' said Peridot bravely.

'Ask what?'

'It's about a spell you put on someone, a prince actually. You turned him into a pig.'

'So?' The wizard yawned.

'Well, I was hoping you would tell me how to change him back again,' Peridot asked, feeling rather intimidated.

The wizard gave her a piercing glance. 'No,' he said baldly.

Peridot was not to be put off by this. As the middle child of seventeen, she was used to being told 'no' by her elder sisters. She knew that if she nagged hard enough she would eventually get her own way.

'But I need to know,' she said sweetly.

'No,' repeated the wizard, and turned his back on her. 'You can clean my boots for me,' he added, gesturing to a pair of black leather boots lying beside a brazier.

Peridot was taken aback. This was not what she was used to.

'Who do you think I am,' she said unwisely. 'Your servant?'

'Well, yes,' mocked the wizard, his eyes glinting.

Peridot's hands clenched into fists and she stamped her foot hard on the tiled floor. She pulled off her turban to reveal long flowing dark hair tumbling around her shoulders, and struggled out of the striped shirt. She stood before the wizard in her green embroidered bodice and skirts and put her hands on her hips defiantly.

'I'm not a serving boy. I'm a girl,' she shrieked.

'So I see,' said the wizard calmly.

Peridot stamped her foot again. 'And not only that, I'm a princess.'

'Congratulations,' said Wizard Saladin, sounding bored. 'You'll find the boot cleaner in that cupboard over there,' he pointed out helpfully.

'I'm not going to clean your boots,' said Peridot in horror.

'Oh, I think you are,' murmured the wizard softly. 'I hired you, remember? That means I am entitled to your services for a year at least. More, if you work well.'

Peridot hadn't lived with seventeen mothers for nothing. She could tell the wizard meant it and she had no choice but to do his bidding. Scowling, she opened the cupboard and took out a soft cloth and a tin of boot polish and started rubbing the boots clean.

Half an hour later she placed the gleaming boots beside the brazier and put away the polish and the rag tidily.

'Anything else, oh master?' she asked sarcastically.

'That will do for now,' said Wizard Saladin. 'Tell me, what sort of straits is Balthazar in that he needs hire his daughters out as servants?'

'He isn't, he didn't, I mean he doesn't know I'm here,' confessed Peridot. 'You have no idea how boring life gets in the palace. I only wanted an adventure.'

The wizard gave a short bark of laughter. 'You appear to be having one,' he remarked. 'I suppose I owe you something for cleaning those boots. You may go.'

'You mean I'm free?' asked Peridot.

'Yes, yes. It gave me a little amusement to tease you, but any more could be tedious. Shut the door on your way out.'

'Thank you. But I really do want to know how to turn the pig back to a prince.'

'Why? Are you in love with him?'

'Of course not. I'm far too young. In fact, I haven't even met him as a person, only a pig. I feel sorry for him, that's all.'

The wizard regarded her cynically, as he played with a silver tassel on his robe.

'Sorry for him, eh? Bad luck. Now go.'

'But you have to tell me...' argued Peridot.

'The door is over there,' the wizard pointed out.

'Please,' wailed Peridot. 'It must be a terrible life being a pig.'

'More boring than being a princess?' suggested the wizard.

'Oh, I can always find something exciting to do if I try. But pigs get eaten when they are big enough and he's growing really fat.'

Wizard Saladin yawned and inspected his fingernails. 'Oh, if you insist,' he drawled. 'The way to break the spell is to make a wish.'

Peridot was surprised. 'Is that all?'

The wizard nodded. 'Of course, you must be holding the full moon in your hands when you wish,' he added.

'But that's impossible,' spluttered Peridot.

'I don't think anything is ever impossible for a determined young lady such as yourself,' stated the wizard firmly. 'Now go home at once before I lose my temper with you. You wouldn't like me to do that, would you? I have this incurable habit of turning people who annoy me into pigs.'

Peridot gave him a look of horror and sped out the door. She buttoned up her shirt and tied the turban on in the alley way outside, watched by a scraggy grey cat and a round eyed child.

'Which way is the temple?' she asked the child.

Blank silence met her and with a shrug Peridot turned and started walking at random through the streets. After an hour she was thoroughly lost and sank down onto a seat beside a signpost in despair.

'Make way, make way,' came a loud voice, and a pompous man in purple robes walked around the corner. He was ringing a small handbell and Peridot's heart leapt.

'It's one of the footmen from the palace,' she whispered.

A litter came into sight, carried by four slaves, one at each corner.

'I wonder who is in it?' Peridot wondered. She followed closely behind for a few paces then ran alongside as the bearers paused at a crossroad to allow a small caravan of camels to pass. Peridot glanced through the gap in the curtains and saw that it was Opal.

'Opal,' she cried, reaching for the door handle. A cuff on the side of the head sent her reeling away.

'Get away, scum,' said the footman, preparing to deal her another blow.

Opal pulled back the curtain at the commotion and peeped out.

'Peri,' she cried in horror.

'I'm sorry, your highness,' bowed the footman. 'I soon have this riff raff back to the gutter where he belongs.

Peridot made frantic faces at Opal who was gazing at her open mouthed.

'Oh, er, that's all right. He can accompany me,' she said weakly.

The footman looked appalled.

'He comes from my sister Ruby's household with a message for me,' Opal improvised creatively. 'It's private,' she added firmly.

The footman looked on in distaste as Peridot climbed thankfully into the litter.

'Thanks,' she grinned in relief. 'I was never so pleased to see anyone before.'

'Peridot, what on earth is going on? Where did you get those clothes and what are you doing here?'

'It's a bit complicated,' Peridot said wryly. She proceeded to tell Opal a strictly edited version of her adventures, confident that of all her sisters, she was the one who could be trusted with a secret. Opal was shocked but amazed at Peridot. She went pale when she heard about Wizard Saladin, and made Peridot promise never to go near him again.

'I have no intention of that,' shuddered Peridot.

'Now what do we do? You can't come into the palace dressed like that.'

'Put me down outside it,' Peridot suggested. 'I'll get Ra, er, someone to help me over the wall. It will be fine, you'll see.'

Opal doubtfully agreed to this, and Peridot was relieved to find that Ravid was waiting sprawled on the grass beside the wall in the shade of a tree.

'Thank goodness you're here,' he blurted out. 'Did you see the wizard?'

Peridot nodded. 'He even told me how to break the spell but I think it's a trick,' she said gloomily. 'I have to get back. I'm going to be horribly late as it is and they're bound to send someone to look for me if I'm not there for the evening meal.'

Ravid grinned and hoisted Peridot up the wall where she gave him a quick wave as she called 'goodbye.'
Chapter 8.

Peridot became a familiar sight in the palace library in the next few weeks.

'I'm sure that if there's a way of holding the moon, then it will be in one of these books,' she muttered.' She had worked her way from A for Aurora Borealis through to M for Milky Way before she became daunted. The dust was making her sneeze and the gloom was depressing. 'There is nothing useful here at all,' she moaned.

One of the royal scribes overheard her and hurried to help.

'May I be of assistance? What are you searching for, your highness?'

Peridot regarded him thoughtfully. Ishtar was an elderly man, stooped and shortsighted from many years spent pouring over parchments and scrolls as he transcribed the daily events of the kingdom and surrounding lands into record books for the king. 'How would you hold the moon in your hands?' she asked.

Ishtar looked at her gravely. 'It sounds very like a riddle to me, your highness. Or perhaps even a story. You would be better to seek the answer in one of the books on your own shelves, or even in the nursery.'

Peridot thanked him politely and decided to visit the nursery, figuring she needed some excitement after her weeks of fruitless research.

'I can always come back and look through the rest of the books later,' she thought with relief.

The nursery was in a small wing of the palace as far away from the king's quarters as possible. Noni, the plump and motherly nursemaid, ruled the other servants there with a rod of iron, but she was never strict with any of the princesses.

'Peridot, my little one. Come and let me see you. My goodness, but you're growing up. Are you brushing your hair one hundred times each night? Tsk, tsk. Your fingernails don't look very clean. I hope you are behaving as a young lady ought?'

'Yes, yes,' said Peridot impatiently, suffering a large hug and a critical inspection. She shifted her feet restlessly. 'I wanted to ask you something, Noni.'

'Of course. But first, come and see what your little sisters are up to.'

Noni bustled into a smaller room, where two little girls were solemnly playing with well-worn rag dolls. 'Look, Tourmaline and Turquoise. Here is your sister Peridot come to visit you.' She turned to Peridot with a smile. ' Aren't they the beautiful little ones? See the lovely curls Tourmaline has and Turquoise has such a pretty dimple in her cheek.'

The two little girls beamed at Peridot and Tourmaline shyly offered her the doll to hold.

'No, no, you play with it,' said Peridot hurriedly.

The little girls were like dolls themselves and Peridot spent a happy half-hour playing at tea parties with them under the indulgent eye of Noni. Suddenly the wail of a baby caused them all to look up.

'That will be baby Zircon,' sighed Noni getting to her feet, her knees creaking nearly as much as the wicker chair she had been resting in. 'It's time for her bath now, the poppet.'

'But I meant to ask you about the moon,' cried Peridot. 'Are there any stories or books here about catching the moon?'

Noni thought for a moment. 'There's the cow that jumped over the moon, was that what you were thinking?'

'Yes, no, I mean... is there anything else?'

'There are lots of rhymes and songs with the moon in,' said Noni, 'but none that I have heard about catching it. Is it a riddle?'

'I don't think so,' said Peridot despondently. 'But thanks anyway.'

Noni turned with her arms out as a young nursemaid handed her the red-faced bundle that was the seventeenth princess. 'Who's a beautiful one, then?' she cooed.

Peridot could see that she wasn't going to get anywhere like this so she said her farewells to Turquoise and Tourmaline and promised to come and play with them again.

'I'm no better off than before,' she thought crossly.'

'The moon is brighter at night,' said Tourmaline suddenly, as Peridot turned to go. Peridot stopped. 'Of course it does. I should be looking for something that happens at night time, not daytime. Thanks, Tourmaline.' She kissed her surprised sister and skipped back to her own quarters, where Amber was patiently teaching Beryl and Garnet the intricacies of cat's cradle. 'Do you want to play too?' called Garnet.

'No, I'm too busy,' Peridot said, this not being one of her favourite games.

'I'm going to show Moonstone how to do this when she's older,' Garnet told her importantly.

Moonstone! Peridot stood still. 'Of course, our sister Moonstone. I wonder if that's what the wizard meant. She's certainly small enough to be picked up and I can make a wish. Where is Moonstone?' she asked.

Garnet shrugged. 'I don't know. I think she went with Lapis to feed the swans.'

'Bother. I've just come from that side,' said Peridot crossly.

She turned and ran lightly through the gardens, ducking down little used pathways so no one would see her hurrying. Feeding the swans was a favourite pastime of the little princesses. A wide clear lake was fringed with reeds and waterlilies and a small arched bridge at one end led to a tiny island with an arched gazebo on it, extending over the water. The swans had rapidly learned to swim up to these arches and stretch their long necks to snatch up crusts of bread tossed in by the girls. When Peridot arrived rather breathlessly at the bridge, she could see that Moonstone and Lapis were indeed there in the company of one of the nursemaids.

'Moonstone, can you come with me for a minute?' asked Peridot.

Moonstone, who was a plump and determined six-year-old, looked up at her briefly. 'I'm busy,' she said impatiently. She reached into her basket and threw a piece of bread into the water.

'Yes, I can see that. But I need to talk to you. It won't be for long.'

'No. I'm feeding the swans,' stated Moonstone imperiously. Her mother had been the daughter of an ambitious carpet seller who had inveigled the king into marriage, then proved to be the most demanding of all his wives. Moonstone was showing all the signs of being every bit as grasping as her mother.

'Please,' begged Peridot.

'What will you give me if I do?'

Peridot's hands itched to box her sister's ears but she knew that would get her nowhere.

'I'll give you one of my gold bangles,' she offered, slipping one from her wrist and holding it out eagerly.

Moonstone glanced at it scornfully. 'I've got heaps of bracelets like that. Better than that.'

Peridot rolled her eyes and glanced at the nursemaid who flashed her a sympathetic look before lowering her eyes. Lapis was concerned only with the swans and she giggled as two of them squabbled over a large, somewhat soggy chunk of bread. Peridot wracked her brains to think what she could offer Moonstone. Obviously the silly child wasn't going to co-operate otherwise.

'I'll give you a pearl necklace,' she offered recklessly.

Moonstone looked at her suspiciously. 'Where is it?'

'I haven't actually got one at the moment,' Peridot explained.

'All right. Get me the necklace and I'll go with you.'

Peridot recognised defeat when she saw it. Muttering curses on all small sisters she hurried back to leave a note for Ravid under the seat, together with two gold bracelets.

I need a pearl necklace. It might break the spell.

Peridot.

She checked the next day and the note and bracelets had gone but it was a week before she found a small cloth packet under the seat in the outer garden. Opening the packet Peridot found a small strand of uneven, poorly coloured pearls. 'I guess he's a gardener, not a jeweler,' Peridot thought, with a flash of fury for whoever had duped Ravid into thinking this was worth two bracelets. Hoping that Moonstone wouldn't be as discerning, she went in search of her in the nursery quarters.

Luck was with her as Moonstone was seated on a bench in a patch of sunshine, sullenly attempting to hem a handkerchief and was only too happy to have some distraction from the task.

'Here are the pearls I promised you,' said Peridot, handing them over. 'It's a bracelet.'

Moonstone wrinkled her nose. 'They're not as pretty as the ones my mummy wears,' she whined. 'I don't want them.' She tossed them back to Peridot in disgust.

'Too bad. That's all I could get. Now come on, I'm going to pick you up and make a wish and you have to be quiet.'

'Why?'

'In case the wish doesn't work,' explained Peridot.

'Is it a game?' asked Moonstone hopefully.

'Yes. It's a really good game but you have to be quiet.'

Peridot lifted Moonstone up and staggered under her weight. She was a very solid little girl and Peridot began to wish aloud rapidly before her arms gave out.

'I wish for the pig to be turned back to a prince,' she whispered, and lowered Moonstone to the ground in relief.

'Is that the game?' Moonstone looked at her in disbelief.

'Yes. And it's finished now.'

Peridot walked away quickly, as Moonstone showed every sign of throwing a major tantrum. 'I wonder if it worked. I hope it did. Ravid will be really surprised.'

Peridot expected to see or hear something but there was no sign of a new prince, even though a dozen of them were filling the palace with their noisy boasting. Finally she left a note for Ravid thanking him for the pearls and asking about the pig.

_Still as fat as ever_ came the reply.

'Botheration! It wasn't Moonstone after all and I gave up two bracelets for nothing,' fumed Peridot. 'Maybe I'd better go out at night and see what turns up. That would be an adventure anyway, visiting the town at night.'
Chapter 9.

Peridot resolved to wait until her sisters were asleep, then go exploring. Unfortunately she fell asleep herself while listening to Amethyst and Amber's gentle breathing, and by the time she woke the sun had well and truly risen. After three nights like this, Peridot slipped to a quiet corner of the solarium one afternoon and tried to will herself to sleep. 'If I have a rest now,' she reasoned, 'then maybe I'll be able to stay awake tonight.'

She didn't sleep, but that night sheer annoyance kept her awake. She waited until the sounds of the palace had died down and all was dark. Tiptoeing softly, she left the bedroom and made for the gardens in her nightgown. This was accomplished with ease, apart from stubbing her toe on a protruding pillar and scraping her elbow on the side of an archway. These minor matters aside, Peridot was delighted with her adventure. A nearly full moon gave silver light to the gardens, although Peridot had to tell herself sternly that the shadows she saw were only trees and statues, not wild monsters crouching and waiting to attack her. The hole under the wall looked most uninviting but she gritted her teeth and wriggled through with her eyes firmly shut. The outer gardens were even less friendly at night. Peridot wasn't as familiar with the pathways and once or twice she whimpered in fright when a bird called from a distance. She almost turned back but told herself not to be such a ninny and went on doggedly.

Peridot decided not to attempt climbing the wall, as she was unsure how she would get back over it. Instead, after changing into Ravid's old clothes, she slipped around to the palace gates. A loud snoring coming from the guard tower made her grin as she passed by. She carefully opened the small gate in the wall that was used by the palace messengers when they wanted to exit quickly, and slipped through it. Leaving the gate unlatched, Peridot walked on the soft grass beside the road. She took the next track that crossed the road, hoping it was the shortcut that Ravid had shown her. The dark trees blotted out the town lights and Peridot trod carefully, not risking a stumble in the dark.

She wished she had brought her sandals as there were prickly tufts of grass and sharp stones which made her progress a lot slower than she would have liked. Some time later she heard a woman's voice raised in a tuneless song, coming rapidly closer. Peridot stood beside a tree, her heart beating loudly in the darkness.

'Who is there?' she called.

A strange woman entered the clearing. She was of indeterminate age, although obviously not young, and had wispy grey hair pinned around her head untidily. She wore several layers of garments, all in different colours as far as Peridot could tell in the moonlight. But the strangest part of all was the way she moved. She seemed to glide in a sitting position above the ground at Peridot's head height.

'My name is Asindal,' the woman told her agreeably. 'And who are you and where are you going at this time of night?'

'I'm Peri and I'm going for a walk to town.'

'Walking!' cried Asindal in astonishment. 'That's no way to travel. I never walk if I can ride.'

Peridot peered at Asindal. What on earth was she riding? She didn't appear to be sitting on a magic carpet of a cloud held up by a genie. She seemed to be sitting on nothing but air.

'What are you riding?' Peridot asked at last.

'Why, a Night Mare of course. She's such a beauty. See her glossy white mane and delicate hooves. She's bred from champions, aren't you my beauty?'

Asindal patted the air beside her where a horse's neck would have been.

Peridot was astonished. 'I can't see it,' she protested.

'That's because you don't believe it,' confided Asindal with a smile. 'If you believe in Night Mares then you will see them. Would you like to ride one?'

'Er, yes,' agreed Peridot in bewilderment.

Asindal put her fingers to her mouth and gave a shrill whistle. Peridot jumped as something blew a gust of warm air down the back of her neck. She put out a tentative hand and felt the warm, solid side of a large horse.

'Climb on that fallen branch to mount, dearie,' suggested Asindal.

Peridot walked over in a daze and climbed the log without a murmur. She grabbed hold of what she assumed was the horse's mane and clambered onto its broad back. It was a rather unsettling sensation, sitting astride an invisible horse with her nightgown and shirt hitched up rather indelicately. Peridot tried desperately not to fall off, and clung to what appeared to be some sort of braided reins, hung with silken tassels. Asindal started singing tunelessly again and ambled off, Peridot's horse following closely behind. Peridot was bursting with curiosity. She plied Asindal with questions but received only vague replies, which were of no help at all.

'Do you know any way that I can catch and hold the moon?' Peridot asked at last.

'The moon. Well now. Many's the child who has cried for the moon,' Asindal murmured enigmatically.

'But I need to know how to break a spell.' Peridot explained.

She proceeded to tell Asindal about the prince who was in the shape of a pig, and what Wizard Saladin had said.

'Spellbound, is he now? That wizard is a very powerful man. If he said you could break the spell then he'd be telling you the truth. And if it's a challenge, well that's no more or less than I'd expect.'

Asindal fell silent. The horses walked on until they came to a small clearing beside a wide flowing river. 'Look at that now,' she said dreamily, gesturing widely towards the river. 'Isn't that a beautiful sight, indeed.'

Peridot looked and saw the reflection of the trees in the water, as it lay smooth and silver in front of her. 'Are we going across it?' she asked nervously.

'Not this time,' said Asindal regretfully. 'But we'll let the horses drink.'

Peridot held tight to her horse's mane as she felt it lower its head to the edge of the river. Ripples spread out in ever increasing circles showing where the Night Mares each took a few mouthfuls of water. Asindal kept darting her head from side to side watchfully then quite suddenly she clicked her tongue and turned the horses back the way they had come. Peridot looked around and saw a pair of gleaming green eyes among the shadows.

'What is it?' she asked fearfully.

'A tiger, my dear,' Asindal answered briskly. 'The Night Mares don't like them, and who could blame them for that? But they have as much right to be here as we do. Best to avoid them. We'll not linger here.'

The horses quickened their pace to a trot and Peridot bounced uncomfortably for a few minutes before they slowed to an amble again. There was a sudden low rumbling growl from the trees behind her and the Night Mare gave a scream of terror and set off at a gallop through the forest. Peridot was terrified. She lay flat on the horse's back as it shot under low hanging branches and jumped smartly over fallen logs. It seemed that there were gleaming green eyes everywhere she looked, so finally Peridot shut her eyes and concentrated on staying on the horse. She thought guiltily of the tiger heads mounted on the walls of the palace and hoped that the tigers didn't want revenge for her father's hunting skills. She was unsure what a tiger would do to a princess, but was fairly certain it would not be pleasant. Peridot's arms ached from holding the reins and her legs were discovering muscles she didn't know she even had, from gripping the horse's sides in an effort to stay on its back. Just when it seemed that she would have to let go or fall off or both, Asindal dropped her horse to a walk.

'We have left the tigers behind for the moment,' she called cheerfully.

Peridot didn't like the sound of that but it was a distinct improvement on the frantic galloping. They ambled on for a while then Peridot heaved a sigh of frustration. They seemed to have been plodding though these trees for ages and not getting anywhere.

'Are we nearly at the town?' she asked.

Asindal laughed merrily. 'Oh no. This is the Forest of the Night. We don't go near the town, do we, my proud beauties?'

A whicker of assent came from the horses. Peridot was alarmed. 'I think I'd better go home now,' she said politely. 'Do you suppose you could take me back to the palace?'

'Oh, I could,' nodded Asindal. 'Indeed I could. I could do a lot of things. But do I want to? Ah, that's a different story. Would you make it worth my while?'

'Everybody wants something,' sighed Peridot under her breath. She fumbled in the shirt pocket and found the string of pearls that Moonstone had rejected. 'I have these,' she said tentatively.

'Pearls of Wisdom,' breathed Asindal. 'A veritable treasure.' She reached for the bracelet that glowed softly in the moonlight. 'Ah,' she exclaimed, as she slipped it over her wrist and turned it admiringly. 'The palace, you say? Certainly.'

She turned and trotted through the trees with Peridot bouncing along behind, her teeth jolting with every step. They came out of the forest beside the palace gate and Peridot slid down to the ground in relief.

'Thank you,' she said, thinking privately what a wasted night it had been.

'Anytime,' waved Asindal. 'Come along.' She turned, and for a moment Peridot could have sworn she saw an old moth-eaten grey horse with large feet and a mournful expression. Then Asindal vanished and she found her feet getting cold in the dewy grass.

Amber mumbled from across the room as Peridot climbed back into bed. 'What is it? Is it morning?'

'No. Go back to sleep,' hissed Peridot.

She felt heavy eyed and sleepy the next day and told her sisters she'd had a nightmare. 'And that's truer than you know,' she added under her breath.
Chapter 10.

Three nights later the moon was full. The princesses watched it rising as they clapped the storyteller who had entertained them as they ate a late supper.

'I'm going for a walk in the garden before bed,' murmured Jade.

Her sisters looked at her in astonishment. Jade wasn't interested in gardens at the best of times and to want to view them by moonlight was most unusual.

'Whatever for?' asked Pearl.

'I feel like some fresh air,' muttered Jade with a blush.

'She probably wants to meet one of those pathetic princes,' said Sapphire mischievously.

'They are not pathetic. Some of them are very handsome,' Jade replied indignantly. Sapphire made a face and Amber and Peridot began giggling.

'We could sneak after her and watch,' suggested Sapphire. 'She really fancies Cuthbert of Zanglia. He's always writing her poetry and stuff like that.'

'Poetry! Oh yuk!' Peridot made a face but trailed after Sapphire for want of anything better to do. It was too early for going to sleep and the moonlight made everything nearly as bright as day.

'They are probably meeting at the Wishing Pool in the big garden,' Sapphire whispered.

'Wishing Pool?' Peridot looked at her in astonishment.

'Oh, I forgot. You don't get to go into the main garden and learn the names of the Healing Plants and Sacred places for another year yet. Lucky you. It's so boring. There's the Well of Inspiration and the Grove of Meditation...'

'Which one is the Wishing Pool,' Peridot interrupted urgently.

'Come on, I'll show you. We're not really allowed there without one of our mothers but if we are quiet then no one will know we're there.'

Sapphire grabbed Peridot's hand and led her though a large iron gate into the outer garden. They passed through several archways of curving trees before coming to a small courtyard dominated by a large circular bowl. Peridot remembered having seen it the first time she explore the garden but it had held no interest for her then. The bowl was filled with still water and surrounded by a circle of benches.

'You're supposed to be able to wish here, but nothing I've wished for has ever come true, giggled Sapphire.

Peridot stared into the pool. The water was clear and grey, with darker shadows where clipped trees were reflected in the depths. As Peridot watched, a cloud drifted past then the full moon was reflected in the bowl before her.

Peridot took a deep breath as sudden inspiration struck her. She gently lowered her hands into the water, careful not to cause any ripples. She slid her hands gently across until she was holding the reflection of the full moon in her cupped hands.

'I wish the pig was a prince again,' she whispered.

'What are you doing?' As Sapphire leaned against her and bumped her arm, the reflection shattered into a myriad of silver spots.

'Nothing at all,' grinned Peridot.

She went to bed that night convinced she had broken the spell. 'I wonder how I will find out?' she thought.

She didn't have to wonder for long. Shortly after breakfast, one of the serving men brought her a summons from the king.

'His majesty requests the presence of the Princess Peridot in the antechamber of the Acanthus room at midday.'

Peridot heard this with a sinking heart. The king rarely saw his daughters, and when he did it was invariably to punish them.

'What did you do.' gasped Topaz. 'Do you think he's found out about the hole in the wall? I haven't told anyone,' she whispered.

'I don't think so,' said Peridot uncertainly.

Beryl looked at her in horror. 'You must have done something terrible,' she said in awe.

'No I haven't,' Peridot defended herself, thinking guiltily of all the terrible things she had done. She found it hard to concentrate on her music lesson that morning and eventually Nandor, her teacher, gave up with a groan.

'You are supposed to play the flute like a rippling stream. Like so.' He demonstrated, a peal of notes sounding sweet and pure. 'Instead you make the sound of a rusty gate creaking. I cannot bear it. Go and practise and I will listen to you again another day.'

Peridot flounced off with a sniff and whiled away the time until her interview with the king at the Bath House. She had Shiraz paint her fingernails purple and arrange her hair in a becoming knot on the top of her head, hoping to be able to make a good impression.

Finally it was midday and Peridot reluctantly made her way to the Acanthus room as the chimes sounded from the clock tower. The antechamber was empty as she stepped though the carved entranceway, and for one glorious moment Peridot thought that her father might have changed his mind. However a footman struck a gong in the passage outside, heralding the king's arrival. A bustle of serving men, advisors, several stray princes and to Peridot's dismay the Principal Queen accompanied him. Queen Vashti had little to do now that her daughter was satisfactorily married and had announced her intention taking a more active role in ruling the kingdom. So far the king had not been able to dissuade her and was making the best of a bad job by allowing her to accompany him on minor matters.

King Balthazar cast himself down on a high-backed seat and waved at Peridot to step forward.

She bowed her head before her father, wishing she didn't feel quite so nervous.

'Now, um, Peridot is it? Yes, well, er, I have received an offer for your hand in marriage,' boomed the king.

Peridot stared at him, her mouth hanging open in shock. The queen regarded her with dislike and made a whispered remark to one of her serving women, who tittered behind her hand.

'Well, say something, girl,' snapped Balthazar irritably.

'Who is it?' asked Peridot stupidly.

A portly young man stepped forward and bowed to her. He had a pink florid complexion with short straw-like hair, and his ears stuck out from his head on either side. He bore a remarkable resemblance to a pig and an awful thought crossed Peridot's mind as he gazed at her.

'Prince Percival at your service, your highness. I have requested the pleasure of your hand in marriage from your father this morning. Long have I worshipped you from afar and I would like nothing better than you should spend the rest of your life with me.'

Peridot tried not to giggle. 'From afar indeed! From the dirt at my feet,' she thought. 'He still looks a lot like a pig, too.'

'Come on, we haven't got all day. Accept the man so We can get on with Our chess game,' the king snapped.

'Um, thank you very much for the honour, but I don't wish to be anyone's wife just yet,' mumbled Peridot, fighting the urge to laugh.

'What's that?' the king was taken aback. 'Are you refusing him?'

'Yes,' said Peridot simply.

There was an aghast silence. Here was a situation that Balthazar had no idea how to deal with. He looked imploringly at his queen for help.

'She's only a little girl,' my lord, Vashti pointed out. 'Perhaps in a year or so she might be more welcoming,'

'Yes, yes. Good idea. We'll announce the betrothal then and have the formal ceremony in about five years time.'

'No we won't' shouted Peridot. 'I won't marry him. I don't even like him and you can't make me.'

There was a sudden silence as Peridot realised what she had said. The king was a nasty shade of mottled purple. 'Don't you dare defy me, young lady. You'll do what I say or, or...' he spluttered to a stop.

'Perhaps I may make a suggestion,' put in Dinsala smoothly. He was one of the king's chief advisors and the one who generally did all the sensible things required to keep the kingdom running smoothly. Peridot had always been fond of him since the day he found her sobbing over a broken music box in a corner of one of the courtyards. It was a cheaply made, rather garish painted box, but it had been a present from her mother. Peridot had been heartbroken when a jealous Garnet had tried to wrench if from her and broken the lid in the process. Dinsala had tactfully given her his handkerchief and arranged for one of the royal carpenters to repair the box so skillfully that no one would guess it had ever been broken. Peridot had only seen him since from time to time but he was one of her favourite people.

'The Princess Peridot is, as you say, a very young girl, your majesty.' Dinsala bowed to the queen who gave him a sour smile. 'As she has not yet achieved the wisdom of years that you have attained, maybe it would be a better idea to allow the princess to get to know Prince Percival in the surroundings of the court. Then, in five years time if both are agreeable, a betrothal can be arranged.'

'Good idea.' the king seized on this as a way of saving face while Queen Vashti yawned delicately in assumed boredom. 'Hear that Percival? If she wants you in five years time you can have her. Arrange some rooms for this man, will you? Right. I'm off to play chess. You may all go.'

He swept from the room as his attendants hurried to keep up. Prince Percival went down on one knee in front of Peridot.

'You saved me from that evil spell,' he whispered. 'I will always be grateful to you. Let me kiss your hand.'

'Oh, all right but I don't want to marry you,' stammered Peridot, allowing him to press his large pink lips in a wet kiss on the back of her hand. She wiped it off surreptitiously on the back of her tunic as Prince Percival lumbered to his feet. He stood gazing at her, breathing heavily. 'I have to go now,' squeaked Peridot. 'No, no. Don't come with me. You can't. I'm going to the woman's quarters.'

She backed away hurriedly, reflecting bitterly that she would have to stay locked away in the woman's part of the palace for the next five years if she didn't want to run the risk of bumping into Prince Percival again.
Chapter 11.

All Peridot's sisters thought her betrothal was a huge joke. Amethyst took malicious delight in instructing her in the expected behaviour of a queen, and Amber and Topaz tried to outdo each other as they came up with more and more outrageous plans for the sort of life she would lead as Prince Percival's wife. They had all had a good look at him and agreed that as a prince he was definitely not one of the better catches.

It was impossible for Peridot to avoid Prince Percival. Every feast day, there he was sitting opposite her, thanks to Queen Vashti's carefully drawn up table arrangements. He had appalling table manners and fortunately seemed more interested in the food then in her, but Peridot could feel his piggy little eyes boring into her back whenever she turned away from him. She felt quite sympathetic towards Wizard Saladin and decided that he must have been quite justified in his spell. 'And I was stupid enough to break it,' thought Peridot bitterly. 'Look where it's got me!'

Unfortunately her situation meant that her tutors redoubled their efforts to teach her and her days were filled with lessons in History, Music, Deportment and Needlework. Even the royal wives grudgingly accepted their responsibilities and took Peridot on long boring walks around the herb gardens, instructing her in their uses. They also gave long boring lectures about the different customs of the various countries she was likely to come across. Pearl smiled sympathetically. But Jade and Coral were quite put out by Peridot's rise to importance and the only one who was truly sympathetic appeared to be Opal.

It was a few months before Peridot had the time and leisure to get back to the secluded garden, where she discovered with sadness that the striped shirt was musty and mildewed.

'I don't think I can ask Ravid for another. He's done so much for me already,' she said to herself. 'And anyway, he probably doesn't have many clothes to spare.' She slipped a note under the seat reassuring Ravid that she had not forgotten him but explaining briefly about her proposed betrothal. 'Although he probably knows about the prince already,' she thought ruefully.

A few days later Peridot came in from her dancing lesson to find an excited Amber chattering with the serving girls.

'What's all the fuss about?' she asked. 'Has Pearl finally made up her mind who she wants to marry?'

'No, nothing like that,' Amber told her. 'The king has ordered a whipping and we all have to be present for it.'

'Oh no! I hate it when that happens. Why do we have to go?'

'So we can see what happens to people who disobey our father,' snapped Jade spitefully, coming into the room in time to hear her question. 'Hurry up. We haven't much time.'

Peridot trailed dolefully across to the Council Room. This was a large chamber where the king and his advisors heard complaints and made judgements in cases of wrong doing. It also contained a large wheel shaped slab of stone which errant prisoners were strapped to before being whipped. Peridot shuddered when she saw it and felt sick. She was thankful that her young sisters were not forced to watch. Garnet, at seven, was the youngest there and she looked pale and unhappy.

'Does anyone know who it is or what it's for,' whispered Amethyst.

'Apparently it's one of the gardeners,' Coral whispered back. 'Some of the royal jewelry has turned up in the bazaar and the Captain of the Guard saw him with a stolen bracelet. They didn't know who he was until one of the other gardeners caught him leaving a note under one of the seats in the outer garden. They think he must have been arranging an assignation with one of the royal wives. Our father has questioned them all and they all deny it, but then they would, wouldn't they?'

Peridot sat bolt upright in shock. At that moment a blast sounded on one of the ceremonial trumpets and a group of guards marched in with the thin and shaking figure of Ravid shackled between them. In silence they strapped him to the wheel, bent so his naked back would feel the full force of the blows to come. The Warden uncoiled the whip and stroked it lovingly with his hands. Peridot thought she was going to faint and bent her head to allow some of the blood to rush back.

The king strode in and seated himself in the high golden judgement chair.

'Behold. This man has committed a crime against Us,' he boomed. 'He has stolen golden jewelry and attempted to communicate with royal persons. His punishment is forty lashes.'

A gasp went up from the chamber. Twenty was the usual number and even this could leave a man crippled for life.

The king went on, 'if anyone has any mitigating plea, let him speak now.'

This was a formality insisted on by the advisors in the unlikely event of a wrongful arrest. No one seriously expected anyone to speak at this point and the king was about to give the signal to the Warden to begin the whipping when Peridot leapt to her feet.

'I have,' she called.

The king gaped in surprise, as did most of the court. Several of the queens motioned frantically at Peridot to sit down and even Dinsala looked shocked.

'He didn't steal the brooch and the bracelets. I gave them to him. And he was leaving a note for me,' said Peridot desperately as Ravid gave her an anguished look and closed his eyes. He was sure this was the last straw the king needed to order him to be beheaded.

'It's all my fault,' Peridot wailed. 'I made him do it. I found him when I sneaked into the garden one morning and I made him help me by leaving clothes for me.'

The gasp of dismay from the assembled crowd was even louder this time and Peridot suddenly realised that she was making things even worse for Ravid.

'I told him he had to write me a note,' she persisted,

'Enough!' roared the king. 'Take her away and I'll deal with her later. Commence the whipping.'

'No,' shrieked Peridot as the guards advanced towards her. Spotting Prince Percival in the crowd she ran to him and pulled at his arm frantically. 'You tell them,' she panted. 'You know how Ravid helped you, in fact he saved your life. Tell them quickly.'

Prince Percival looked flustered and a rosy blush spread across his cheeks as the king glared at him.

'Hm, well, it's true, actually,' he mumbled. 'This gardener did, as it happens, er, save my life so to speak.'

'Are you speaking in mitigation?' demanded the king.

Prince Percival glanced at Peridot who was gazing at him imploringly and then across at Ravid who had opened his eyes and was looking hopefully up at him.

'Um, er yes. That is to say, well, yes I am.' Prince Percival mopped his brow with a large spotted handkerchief.

King Balthazar was nonplussed. There was a muttering throughout the council room as the onlookers discussed this amazing turn of events. Dinsala took the opportunity to whisper in the king's ear and after a few moments he held up his hand for silence.

'Very well. Prince Percival We accept your plea. Free the prisoner who henceforth is dismissed from Our royal service and who will enter the palace grounds on pain of death from this day forth. Princess Peridot, you can be thankful your betrothed intervened in this case and you will prepare to be married at the next Hallow Day. That is all.'

He stamped out the door as the guards untied Ravid and waited to escort him out of the palace. Peridot wanted to talk to him but was dragged away by two of the queens who harangued her all the way back to her quarters.

'Disgusting behaviour.'

'No daughter of mine would behave like that.'

'Fancy Prince Percival deigning to marry you.'

'You should be grateful, you shameless hussy.'

Peridot's sisters were hardly more sympathetic. Jade was furious. 'It should have been Pearl's wedding next then mine,' she screamed. 'We'll be a laughing stock now you're to be married first.'

'I don't even want to be married,' cried Peridot. 'Go away.'

She threw herself on her bed and howled in misery, privately resolving to run away the first chance she got. 'I'll even risk the tigers,' she sobbed.

However, there were only three weeks until the next Hallow Day and Peridot was surrounded the entire time. If it wasn't the royal dressmakers needing fittings, it was her tutors endeavoring to stuff more knowledge into her unwilling head. Her younger sisters clamoured to be bridesmaids and she gloomily accepted Beryl and Lapis and took some pleasure in turning down Moonstone.

Peridot grew more and more unhappy as Hallow Day approached. The night before the wedding she flopped down in the bathhouse where Shiraz was to give her a last massage before anointing her with rare perfumes in readiness for the ceremony.

'I'm so unhappy,' Peridot wailed.

Shiraz was amazed. 'But you're marrying a prince, my lady. It's a great honour.'

'He eats like a pig,' snapped Peridot, 'and he looks like one too.'

Shiraz tactfully said nothing.

'I don't want to be married,' said Peridot fretfully.

'But think of the freedom you'll enjoy,' sighed Shiraz. 'You'll have furs and jewels and travel all round the world and all sorts of things,' she ended in a rush.

'I won't enjoy any of it if I have to be with him,' muttered Peridot stubbornly.
Chapter 12.

Peridot prayed that something would happen to prevent the wedding but the next day she was arrayed in bridal garments of silver and cream and conveyed to the temple in a richly decorated litter. The population of the town showered the litter with rose petals and Peridot huddled inside it feeling sick to the stomach. Never had the road to the town seemed so short and she envied the carefree children who ran alongside the litter and wished she could swap places with any one of them.

A gong sounded as the litter came to a stop, and Dinsala stepped forward to escort her as the crowd cheered. Peridot's legs trembled as they climbed the steps to the temple and she gripped Dinsala's arm to keep herself from falling. He gave her an encouraging smile and she bit her lip to keep herself from crying. In a daze she stood in the sacred circle and watched as Prince Percival came to stand importantly beside her. He was dressed in a pink and silver suit, which was rather tight, and Peridot began to feel faint at the prospect of being married to him. Lapis and Garnet giggled beside her, holding their baskets of flowers importantly. The Temple Master stepped forward as the crowd began the wailing song that preceded the wedding ceremony.

In order to speed the wedding up, the king had decreed that the usual days and weeks of smaller ceremonies had been dispensed with in favour of one large and final celebration. Queen Vashti had suggested it, afraid that too much time may have allowed Prince Percival to have changed his mind about accepting this most awkward of girls. King Balthazar sat enthroned at one end of the temple, his wives beside him in order of rank. Next to the queens were the princesses. Some of them, like Topaz and Sapphire, were cheerful and envied Peridot, while others, such as Jade and Coral, were obviously seriously miffed. Even baby Zircon was there, fondly watched over by the matronly Noni.

A procession of slaves carried gifts of gold and precious stones from neighbouring kingdoms to the happy couple, and Prince Percival licked his thick lips in pleasure as they were carried past to be displayed on a large marble table. Peridot glanced at the table and was nearly sick. There at one end was the ceremonial knife, which would be used to cut her finger for the blood sacrifice.

'I can't do it, I can't do it.' The words hammered inside her brain until she felt the whole temple should be able to hear them.

The song came to an end at last and the Temple Master opened his mouth to begin chanting the Words of Sacrifice. Before he could speak there was a sudden flash of lightning which made the crowd flinch, and a large cloud of billowing green smoke surrounded Peridot and Prince Percival. Gasping and coughing, Peridot felt her hand grabbed and a voice in her ear said, 'quick. Come with me.'

'Ravid?' she said incredulously.

'Yes. Here, quick.'

Under cover of the smoke, Ravid pulled her though a doorway and they ran out to a deserted street. Here he tumbled her into a waiting cart that was pulled by a large black horse with reins hung with silver tassels. He threw a blanket over Peridot with a quick murmur of apology then took up the reins as the horse trotted off.

Half an hour later Ravid stopped the cart and pulled the blanket back off a hot and disheveled Peridot.

'What's going on?' she asked.

Ravid grinned. 'When I was sacked as a gardener I went along to the Blue Square to see if I could pick up some casual work. Sometimes employers go there to consult the scribes in between the Hiring Markets. Anyway, I was in luck. Guess who was wanting an apprentice?'

'Not Wizard Saladin?'

'The very same. He took me on that day and I've been working for him ever since. Unfortunately the only spell I've learned so far has been how to turn people into pigs.'

'You don't mean...'

Ravid grinned. 'Afraid so. Now there's no way anyone could expect you to marry a pig, but just in case I decided to get you away. They'll think you vanished when the lightning came so no-one will bother looking for you.'

Peridot was so relieved she burst into tears. Ravid patted her back awkwardly. 'I thought you'd be pleased.'

'I am pleased,' sobbed Peridot. 'But where am I going to go now?'

'Well, Wizard Saladin is actually not a bad sort. Maybe he'll take you on a as an apprentice as well.'

'What a good idea,' began Peridot.

There was a small flash of blue flame and the horse disappeared to be replaced by the Wizard Saladin. He was just as tall and forbidding as Peridot had remembered him as he surveyed her with arms folded.

'On the contrary, young Ravid, that is a very bad idea. I have no intention of encouraging a princess into training as a wizard, or even a boot cleaner.' He frowned at Peridot as he spoke and she was surprised to see a gleam of humour in his eyes.

'You were the horse?' Ravid was surprised and Peridot took a step towards the wizard and touched his black cloak with a tentative finger.

'Can you turn yourself into a horse any time you want to?' she asked in amazement. 'Can you turn other people into horses too?'

Saladin gave a short laugh. 'Oh I can turn myself into all kinds of things when necessary,' he replied. 'And other people too, if the whim takes me. But don't worry. I have no intention of turning you into anything, not even a pig like your betrothed.'

'Don't call him that,' scowled Peridot. 'It wasn't my idea to marry him. It's all your fault.'

'Oh? And why is that?' Saladin asked softly.

'Because,' stammered Peridot, 'you turned him into a pig in the first place so that I had to find a way of changing him back. And you were right. He is a pig, even when he is a person.'

'But you wanted an adventure,' the wizard pointed out. There was no answer Peridot could make to this. She thought for a few minutes while Ravid carefully folded the blanket and avoided looking at her. In the end she turned an anguished look to Saladin.

'So what is going to happen to me?' Peridot faltered. 'Where am I going to go?'

'I thought I'd take you to your mother,' said Wizard Saladin calmly. 'She runs a dancing troupe in the next town and she has done very well for herself. I visit her regularly to keep her updated on your progress.'

'My mother?' gasped Peridot. 'I thought she'd forgotten me.'

'On the contrary. She cares a lot for you. But she felt that leaving you in the palace would be the best she could do for you. You would receive a good education and upbringing and never want for anything.'

'Well I can't go back now,' said Peridot indignantly. 'I'd be in such disgrace they'd practically keep me prisoner there until I'm an old woman. I'd rather do anything than that. Even clean boots!'

Saladin smiled. 'I realise that. I dare say there will be some sort of things you can do to keep yourself occupied where your mother lives. I will take you to her shortly, and not as a horse, so you can take that grin off your face, Ravid.'

'Thank you. I think that's great,' said Peridot in a daze of happiness. 'But what if someone sees me there?'

'No need to worry,' said Wizard Saladin smoothly. He raised a hand and murmured, 'curls I think.'

Peridot felt a tingling sensation as her hair suddenly shrank in length and curled into waves around her head. She squeaked in surprise. The wizard looked at her with his head on one side. 'What colour do you think, Ravid?' he asked. 'Red or blonde?'

Blonde, definitely,' said Ravid, thinking of the red-haired Captain of the Guard with a shudder.

'Done,' said Saladin in satisfaction. 'There you are,' he went on, handing Peridot a small mirror from a pocket of his robe. 'That should do it.'

Peridot looked at her reflection in astonishment. Her hair was now a golden blonde and curled becomingly around a heart shaped face. Her eyes were a deep blue instead of brown, and a sprinkling of freckles on her fair skin replaced her usual olive complexion.

'I can't believe it. Is that really me? Will it stay like this forever?' she croaked.

'As long as necessary,' Saladin said briskly. 'I have set it to wear off slowly, so in five years time you will be as you were intended to be. The change will be gradual so no one will ever notice. Now take my hand and I'll help you into the cart.'

Peridot thanked him with a smile. 'I used to think that life was boring and now it looks as if my life will hold enough excitement to last me a lifetime.'

'Me too,' agreed Ravid with a wink, which changed to horror as the wizard raised his hand and chanted a few strange words. Ravid disappeared and a small chestnut horse took his place.

'Purely a temporary arrangement my dear,' Saladin said briskly as he picked up the reins. 'Gee up now.'

And so the Wizard Saladin reunited the Princess Peridot with her mother and they all lived happily ever after.

And what about Prince Percival? Well, he lived his days in a golden sty surrounded by vast amounts of mud to wallow in and even vaster amounts of food to eat. All of which made him much happier than he would have been had he been married to Peridot. The king finally married an eighteenth wife who at last gave him the son he always wanted, although he was horribly spoiled by all his older sisters. The king called him Dinsala after his favourite advisor, who had mysteriously disappeared at the same time as Peridot. All that was ever found of him was a large silver tassel!

