The Wide-Awake Princess by E. D. Baker

emerged fromthe forest onto rolling farmland dotted with small, clear-water lakes. They didn’t see any signs until they reached a crossroad and found two of them nailed to a tall post. The sign on the top was old and had two arrows, one pointing to the left and one to the right. The faded writing on the arrow that pointed to the left read
Kingdom of Shimshee, 12 miles
. The arrow pointing to the right read
Gallfield, 5 miles
. Under the arrows, someone had posted another sign that had been painted with fancy curlicues and flourishes. The sign read:

    HEAR YE! HEAR YE! PRINCE ANDREAS OF
COREALIS IS HOLDING A CONTEST TO FIND
THE PERFECT PRINCESS TO BE HIS WIFE.
THE CONTEST WILL BE HELD AT THE
ROYAL CASTLE NEAR THE VILLAGE OF
GALLFIELD FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS.
ALL UNMARRIED PRINCESSES MAY ENTER.

    Annie was reading the sign for the third time when Liam pointed to the left. “Look, Shimshee is this way.”
    Annie sighed. “I know. We have to go find Digby. Too bad,” she said as she turned to follow Liam.



CHAPTER 7
    THERE WAS NOTHING to mark the border between the kingdom of Corealis and the kingdom of Shimshee except a white wooden stake standing at the edge of the road. A few nail holes at the top showed where a sign had once been posted.
    “If I remember correctly, we’re only three or four miles from the city of Kenless, where the royal castle is located,” said Liam. “I think that’s where we should start looking for Digby.”
    “Uh-huh,” Annie replied. She had mixed emotions about finding Digby. Part of her wanted Digby to come back, kiss her sister, and have everyone wake up; the other part of her couldn’t help but say—does it have to be Digby? If only Gwendolyn hadn’t fallen for
him
!
    Annie was still thinking about how much she couldn’t stand Digby when she realized that she’d been smellingsomething new and different for some time. “What’s that?” she asked, sniffing the air.
    “We’re near the ocean now,” said Liam. “We should be able to see it soon.”
    “I’ve never seen the ocean,” Annie said.
    “Maybe we can go down to the beach before we leave.”
    “I’d love that,” said Annie, “if there’s time.” She had never gone sightseeing before, and wouldn’t have thought of it if Liam hadn’t been with her, but having him there made the trip less of an ordeal, even when they didn’t exchange a single word.
    The next hill was higher than those around it. Annie’s legs began to ache by the time they reached the top, but she knew right away that the climb had been worth it. The town that nestled at the foot of the hill surrounded a small port on three sides. Sailing ships rocked at their moorings while people scurried along the docks carrying heavy loads on and off the ships. Pennants flew over a castle that sat at the far end of the town keeping watch over the narrow streets. Just beyond the castle, a vast body of water spread out for as far as she could see, its undulating waves rushing toward the shore and lapping at the piers that jutted out from a gravel and dirt street.
    Annie had never seen anything like it. The town itself seemed ordinary enough, but the ocean waves were almost hypnotic, and the limitless expanse was almost more than her mind could grasp. She stood there, open-mouthed and barely breathing, until Liam nudged herand said, “I’ve been thinking, when we get down there you should let me do the talking.”
    “Why?” Annie asked, dragging her gaze from the water to Liam. “I’m the princess. As my guard, you should just—”
    “That’s exactly why,” Liam replied. “You’re a princess. We’re in a foreign kingdom without an adequate escort to keep you safe, so it’s up to me. I’ll do what I can, but you’ll be safer if we don’t let anyone except Digby know who you are. There’s no saying what people would do if they knew the truth, so whatever you do, don’t tell anyone else that you’re a princess. You’re still dressed as a boy.