“Now come along. We’re going to play quoits with my little brother, Prince Edward. He especially asked that you join in. Said you didn’t treat him as a child or a future king.” An equal? The thought was fleeting, and Rose quashed it before the words could reach her lips. “Imagine that . . . ,” Elizabeth continued. “He has such an odd way of thinking.”

So, thought Rose, the little prince must have liked her, “taken a shine” to her as her mom would have said, when they played in the tree hollow. But she had no idea what quoits were. Some sort of game?

“And milady, should I join in?” Someone in a corner of the room spoke up. Rose could see quite clearly she was a woman with dwarfism dressed in an identical gown to Elizabeth’s. She wore a pale blue kirtle embroidered with a leaf design. Beneath was a pleated petticoat that was revealed by a side slit.

Elizabeth emitted a gasp of exasperation and rolled her eyes. Then she muttered under her breath, “Why would my father think a dwarf would please me?”

“You don’t like me, milady?” The woman looked as if she was on the brink of tears.

“No . . . noooo, Bettina. It’s not that. . . . It’s just that tumbling dwarfs feel so useless.” Elizabeth pursed her lips. “I mean no offense.”

Rose was boiling inside. How could these people be so insensitive? Wasn’t this just another kind of bullying? Sixteenth-century bullying for royals!

“The whole thing is offensive!” Rose blurted out. And it seemed as if the entire chamber had inhaled sharply and was holding its breath. Mrs. Dobkins, the princess, Sara, and a girl from the kitchens clearing the breakfast had all gasped at once.

“What in the world are you talking about, girl?” Elizabeth turned on Rose.

“Pardon me, milady. But I find it very offensive that this short woman is regarded as merely an object of amusement. It’s . . . it’s . . . it’s simply awful to treat a human being this way. Shame on you, princess! Shame on you all!” Rose stomped her foot. Mrs. Dobkins staggered a bit and grabbed the edge of a table. Sara fled the chamber. The princess’s face swam with a peculiar mixture of emotions. And Bettina looked up in awe with shining eyes at Rose.

It took several seconds, but the princess’s face finally settled into one expression—curiosity. “Everyone leave my chamber save for Rose.”

When the door shut, Elizabeth turned to Rose.

“Who are you that you dare to say ‘shame on you’ to a royal princess?”

“I am an ordinary girl.”

“You’re not ordinary. I know it. I saw you reading a book of mine. One that Kat Ashley, my tutor, had left for me. I asked Kat about you. She said she knew of no relative named Rose Ashley. At least no one nearby.”

“I’m not from nearby.”