Aerity squeezed in the group and put a hand on her hip. “Still not taking time to aim for the center, Donny?”
At the sound of her voice, the men turned their heads in surprise. Aerity pretended not to notice how Paxton stood with his arms crossed and Tiern grinned next to him, nudging his brother, who watched her closely. The group of men chuckled at her teasing. Donubhan’s face paled to a point that made his freckles stand out more.
“How’d you find me already, then?”
“It’s hard to hide that head of yours.” Again, the surrounding men laughed. Aerity grinned and moved forward, ruffling his hair. “Back to the castle. You know it’s not safe to roam.”
Donubhan threw his head back dramatically and groaned his protest.
“Argh, scallywag,” Harrison said, crouching menacingly in front of Donubhan, who grinned. The boy attempted darting aside, but Harrison caught him and tossed him easily over his shoulder.
The guards were already surrounding the prince, prepared to take him by force. They were accustomed to his antics.
Donubhan saw the guards from his high place on Harrison’s shoulder and began to grasp for an excuse to stay. “Wait! First show the hunters how well you can do the trick!” He pointed at the princess. Harrison swung around to face her.
Aerity’s mouth dropped open and her face flamed as every man turned to her with raised brows. She released a breathy laugh. “I think not.”
“Yeah, Princess!” said Harrison, lowering the prince, but holding his shoulders. “Show us!” Aerity shot him a pleading glare which only made him grin.
The widower Samuel and the handsome lad Tiern nodded.
This could not be happening. There’s no way she’d flip for a crowd of men.
“I’m in skirts . . .” she muttered lamely. “It’s not proper. Come along, Donny.”
Lord Alvi gave a loud laugh, flashing his white teeth at her. “Ah, I don’t believe she can do it!” His men chuckled. Aerity knew he was only being playful, but the heat crept further up her face.
The Ascomannians began to chant, “Show us! Show us!” and soon the other men joined in. Aerity wanted to crawl over the wall and hide. She’d only done that silly trick in front of her siblings and cousins during the many hours they spent cooped up in the castle together. But the hunters’ smiling faces were filled with the hope of a moment’s entertainment to take their minds off the recent day’s disappointments.
Perhaps she could do it. Just once.
A tight smile pushed its way upward, despite her humiliation. “Fine! But I must change. Lieutenant Gillfin, don’t let that little fox out of your sight.” She pointed to her brother.
Harrison patted the boy’s shoulders. Everyone cheered as Aerity huffed a breath and turned to leave, shaking her head in disbelief at what she was about to do. Her blood thrummed in nervous anticipation.
Ten minutes later she found herself peeking around the gate, partially hidden by the myriad of vines woven through the metal bars. She hoped to find that the men had forgotten her silly agreement and gone back to their own business.
No such luck.
They were standing in the sunshine, in the exact same places, many of them with their arms crossed. Waiting. Expectant. Chatting contentedly among themselves.
Blast that Donny! She ought to whack him with a whale bone.
Behind her, Aerity heard quick, light footfalls and panting breaths. The princess turned to see her sister and cousin, their faces pink from running. Wyneth wore her gray skirts, but Vixie wore trousers like Aerity and held her bow.
My, word travels fast, Aerity thought.
“Do Mama and Papa know you’re out here?” Aerity asked her sister.
Vixie lifted her chin. “I don’t care what the king says. But, no. They don’t know.”
Aerity fought back a smile. Their parents would know soon enough. Aerity was still nervous about having Vixie near the hunters, for several reasons, but she realized allowing Vixie to participate would take a fraction of the attention off herself. “All right, then.”
“Well, you’d best hurry,” Wyneth said. “If the queen finds out her children are flipping through the air with arrows at the ready in front of all these hunters, we’re all in trouble!”
With a deep breath Aerity led the way into the commons and the men cheered. She felt foolish, like a performing monkey from her grandparents’ former circus days, improperly dressed no less, but it was too late to back out now.
With all three royal children in the west commons, guards poured in, lining the crowd. Aerity spotted marksmen from the castle rooftops and balconies, moving to get a better look at the spectacle below.
Fantastic.
She refused to look around and see if the man Paxton was watching. If he wasn’t, then he was the only one. It would be her luck to fall on her face in front of everyone.
“Let’s get this over with,” she muttered to herself. Louder, she said to her siblings, “Line up beside me facing your targets. We go on my count.”