Sleeping Beauty, the One Who Took the Really Long Nap by Wendy Mass Page A

with a rose’s thorn, andmy eyes filled with tears when I recalled Mama kissing my finger. I turned away before he noticed, though.
    â€œAnd here’s the swing!” he was saying. “And the fountain! Look at her spit that water, it is so wonderful!”
    I couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm. “You truly love nature, don’t you?”
    He nodded. “When I was younger, I would watch the grass grow for hours.”
    I laughed. “Me, too.”
    He took my hand. His grip was firm. It felt right. “Tell me more about your childhood,” he said. We began to walk through the gardens, with me telling him about the fairies’ gifts, and how I was always so protected. I even told him about my failures at painting and cooking. When I told him how I had tried to dislodge the painting in the library from the wall, he laughed and said his mother had tried to do the same thing. I could not believe that painting had hung in the new castle for four more generations. Ugh!
    It was nice to relive my childhood by sharing it with him. Every once in a while he would interject with something from his youth, but only rarely. Simply from what he didn’t tell me I knew it must not have been an easy childhood.
    As we stepped out of the garden, the brush and leaves cleared instantly from the Great Lawn. We began to crossit, when suddenly I bumped right against something. The Prince kept walking, but I could not.
    â€œIs something wrong?” he asked, returning to my side.
    â€œI … I do not know.” I put my hands up and felt in front of me. It appeared to be an invisible, slippery wall. “Something won’t let me pass,” I said, panic rising. The Prince felt around but could find nothing.
    â€œThat is very odd,” he said.
    I was relieved he did not doubt my words. He suggested we should find out how far it extended, so we walked the entire perimeter of the castle, the vines and brush clearing ahead of us. The invisible wall extended the whole way around. Apparently it was only for me, since the Prince had no trouble walking anywhere.
    â€œPerhaps the fairy is still protecting you for some reason,” he suggested. “I think we should go back inside until we figure it out.”
    I nodded, grateful for his wisdom and his company. He took my hand, and we made our way back to the garden and into the library. A figure stood up from one of the chairs, and we both jumped back. The bright sunlight was behind us and my eyes took a second to adjust.
    â€œWhat does a girl have to do to get some food around here?” the achingly familiar voice asked.
    I gasped and threw myself across the room and intoSara’s arms. She looked exactly the same as the last time I saw her.
    â€œEr,” the Prince said, “I’ll go make you something right now.” He hurried from the room. I was too busy sobbing for joy to pay much mind.
    â€œWho’s the guy?” Sara asked. “And does he have a brother?”

I stood outside the library for a moment, long enough to hear the girl explain that when the fairy put the house to sleep, she requested to sleep along with it, and to wake when Rose did. What a truly wondrous and selfless thing to do! I had been dreading having to leave Rose alone when I went back to my own castle, and now I could breathe easier.
    I quickly whipped up the same meal that Rose and I had eaten earlier, and brought it into the library. The two of them were talking about their families and how they couldn’t believe they were so long gone. They stopped when they saw me and forced smiles onto their faces. I wanted to tell Rose that it was all right to mourn, but I did not want to tell her how to feel or what to do. From what she shared with me, she’d had enough of that in her childhood.
    Her friend was introduced to me as Sara, and when I told her I was the Prince, she asked, “But what is your first name?” I had to