Tournament Trouble: Sword Girl Book 3 (4 page)

Tommy led the morris dancers through the town to the blacksmith's workshop.

‘Easily fixed,' the blacksmith declared, and with three taps of his hammer Boris's bells were as good as new. ‘And what can I do for you today, Sword Girl?' he asked Tommy.

‘Some tacks for Smith, please,' said Tommy.

She took the parcel of tacks and said goodbye to the dancers.

‘Thank you, Sword Girl,' said Boris.

‘You'll have to come watch us dance at the fair,' added Norris.

‘I'll try,' Tommy promised, then skipped off to the cloth merchant.

Tommy was crossing the bridge over the moat on her way back to the castle when she heard someone calling her. Peering over the side of the bridge she saw Lil and the crocodiddle by the edge of the moat.

‘Wait there!' Tommy cried. ‘I've got something exciting to tell you!'

She ran down to the moat's edge.

‘Sir Benedict has asked me to be in the tournament!'

‘That's wonderful, Tommy,' said Lil. ‘Well done.'

‘And guess what?' Tommy continued. ‘I'm going to learn to ride a horse, just like a squire!'

‘Hmph. So now you've gone mad for horses too, have you? I suppose you'll be weaving ribbons in their tails next,' the crocodiddle muttered.

‘Anyway, I'd better get back to the armoury,' Tommy said. ‘Smith is waiting for these tacks.'

She hurried through the castle gate and across the courtyard to the armoury. ‘Here you are, Smith. I'll see if Reynard needs any help with the swords.' She entered the sword chamber to see Reynard swishing a ruby-encrusted sword from side to side.

‘What are you doing?' she gasped. ‘That's Sir Walter's sword – you shouldn't be playing with that.'

‘And what are you going to do about it?' Reynard demanded. But he put the sword back in the rack and said sulkily, ‘Seeing as you're back, you can clean these swords yourself.' He gestured to the pile of swords that, if anything, looked bigger than it had when Tommy left for town. ‘I'm going back to my own room.'

Shaking her head, Tommy sat down with her file and whetstone, picked up a sword and got to work. Not even sulky Reynard could spoil her mood. This time tomorrow, she'd be practising for the tournament!

CHAPTER 5

T
HE NEXT MORNING
, Tommy hurried straight to the stables after breakfast. She passed through the archway that led from the great courtyard into the smaller courtyard outside the stables and entered the huge vaulted room that housed the castle's horses. The first thing she noticed was the noise: the cry of voices, the whinny of horses, the clatter of hooves striking flagstones. She saw some grooms brushing horses while others ran back and forth with saddles and stirrups as knights and squires shouted orders. Stable hands were mucking out the stalls – a very smelly job, Tommy realised as she drew closer.

‘I'm looking for the stable master,' she said to one of the stable hands.

The boy pointed to a tall wiry man talking to a knight. ‘There.'

Tommy stood to one side until the knight had departed, then stepped forward.

‘Excuse me,' she said. ‘Sir Benedict sent me. My name's Tommy, from the armoury. I'm here to learn to ride.'

‘Ah yes, the sword girl.' He looked Tommy up and down. ‘You're just a wee thing, aren't you? We'll have our work cut out for us getting you ready for the jousting in three days. Still, if that's what Sir Benedict wants … He told me to put you on old Bess. This way.' He jerked his head for Tommy to follow, but when they got to Bess's stall it was empty.

‘Where's Bess got to?' the stable master asked a passing groom.

‘Courtyard,' the groom called over his shoulder. ‘I think one of the town lads was seeing to her.'

‘Ah, so that's it. We're so busy because of the tournament we've had to get some lads in from town to help us,' the stable master explained.

He and Tommy walked out of the stables and into the courtyard, where a chestnut mare was waiting, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot.

‘Here she is,' said the stable master. ‘All saddled up for you already.'

‘She's beautiful,' Tommy said, admiring the mare's long dark mane and glossy coat.

The stable master slapped the horse on the rump affectionately. ‘She's a real lady is Bess. She won't give you any trouble. And mind you don't give her any trouble, either – Sir Benedict is powerful fond of Bess.'

Tommy approached the horse hesitantly. ‘Hello, Bess,' she said, patting the horse on the neck. ‘I'm Tommy. I've never ridden a horse before.'

The horse regarded her with deep brown eyes but said nothing.

‘Now let's start at the beginning,' said the stable master. ‘You see this saddle we've got on here? That's your regular saddle, with a pommel to grip.' He pointed to a raised bit at the front of the saddle. ‘For the jousting, you'll use a special saddle that's raised at the front
and
the back to hold you in place. There'll be no hanging on to the reins when you're jousting – you'll have a lance in one hand and a shield in the other.'

The stable master talked about saddles and stirrups, bridles and reins, till Tommy thought her head would burst from trying to cram in so much new information.

Half the morning had passed before he finally said, ‘Right, let's get you on.' He cupped his hands and said, ‘I'll give you a leg-up.'

Tommy swallowed. She'd never really thought about how big horses were before but now, standing alongside Bess, she felt very small.

She placed one foot in the stable master's linked hands and managed to get the other foot into the stirrup dangling just below the horse's ribs. Taking hold of the pommel, she swung her leg over the top of the saddle.

‘That's the way,' said the stable master.

But as Tommy came to rest in the saddle, Bess let out a shrill neigh and reared up.

Tommy screamed in fright as she rose high into the air and then was flung off the horse's back.

Ooph!
Tommy hit the ground with a thud that knocked the wind out of her. Luckily she had landed in a pile of hay, which cushioned her fall.

‘You all right there, Sword Girl?' the stable master asked, stretching out a hand to help Tommy up.

Tommy's legs were shaking as she got to her feet. ‘I ... I think so,' she said.

She brushed the hay from her tunic while the stable master took hold of Bess's reins. ‘There now,' he soothed, running his fingers through the horse's mane as she stamped and huffed. ‘There now, old Bess.'

He turned to Tommy. ‘I don't know what got into her. She's normally as gentle as a lamb. Come here, girl.' He beckoned Tommy closer. ‘We'll give it another try.'

But as Tommy approached, the horse shied away, neighing.

‘Bess,' the stable master scolded. ‘Steady there.' He soothed the horse once more and Tommy again took a step forward.

The horse skittered sideways, snorting, her deep brown eyes rolling wildly.

‘I never seen such a thing.' The stable master sounded mystified. ‘Seems she's taken a real dislike to you, Sword Girl.'

A dislike to her? But why? Tommy looked at the horse in dismay; the horse appeared to be glaring at her.

‘But what about my lesson?' Tommy asked. ‘And the jousting practice?'

The stable master shook his head. ‘There'll be no getting you on her back today, not with her all spooked the way she is. We'll just have to try again tomorrow.'

‘But the tournament … What if I'm not ready in time?'

The stable master shrugged. ‘Sorry, Sword Girl. There's nothing I can do.'

CHAPTER 6

T
HAT AFTERNOON
, Tommy joined the squires in the great courtyard for jousting practice.

When Sir Hugh entered, riding a large grey stallion, Tommy went up to him.

‘I'm sorry, Sir Hugh,' she said. ‘I don't have a horse today.'

Sir Hugh looked surprised. ‘Sir Benedict told me you'd be on Bess.'

Tommy ducked her head. ‘Bess … doesn't like me,' she confessed.

‘Doesn't like you?' Sir Hugh's forehead creased in puzzlement. Then he shook his head. ‘We don't have time to find you a new mount now, Tommy. You'll have to practise on foot today. But mind you're on horseback for tomorrow's practice.'

‘Yes, Sir Hugh,' Tommy murmured.

She went to the corner of the courtyard to fetch a lance and shield. As the squires mounted their horses, she could see them looking at her and whispering. Embarrassed, Tommy stared hard at her shield, which was painted with the Flamant Castle heraldry: a pink flamingo on a blue background. Her wooden lance, which was taller than her, was painted in pink and blue stripes.

The squires on horseback lined up and Tommy stood at the end of the line.

‘Yesterday we practised charging,' Sir Hugh called. ‘Today, we'll practise with the lance.'