“What a glorious day,” remarked Sophie. For once Sophie was looking out of the window and not at my writing desk.

I agreed and sighed deeply. 

Oh, how I wished I was outdoors with my little grey pony and not having to tidy up another ink well disaster. 

If only my quills didn’t snap quite so easily, it would be so much more pleasant to write down my lessons. I now have to wear a smock over my clothing to protect my better princess clothes. Quite seriously, quills are awful and I do wish someone clever would invent something better to write with.

Sophie just laughs whenever a quill breaks and says ‘Marietta, learning is meant to be messy, how would you know you were learning if you were always perfect?!” 

I don’t think Sophie ever wants an answer when she says that. But I looked at her anyway, just to check if she was going to ask me anything else today.

But then Sophie gave me a look. 

You know the sort of look, a look which says ‘I am having a deep think about something.’ In my experience, those sorts of looks often lead to unexpectedly happy adventures.

“Right! Pack up that writing desk! Mop up that ink!”

I knew it. 

Sophie had had an idea. Oh, how I hoped her idea had something to do with going outdoors!

Sophie and I walked down the seven or eight staircases which twisted and turned their way down to the Cold Mountain Castle’s kitchens. It wasn’t lunch, we’d just had lunch, and it was much too early for afternoon tea, so I really did not know what we were about to do. 

As we entered the kitchens Sophie spotted Cook at the table closest to the back door. Cook seemed to be organising vegetables from the garden. 

“Hello Cook,” said Sophie and I together.

Cook grinned and then ignored us both. 

Cook wasn’t exactly being rude but she was being Cook, pirate queen of her giant kitchens which fed the whole castle. Cook is a very important person. 

Sophie looked at me and I shrugged my shoulders. 

“Cook, I want to take Princess Marietta out to harvest apples. I thought we’d gather up the windblown apples for the little grey pony too.”

Now at that, Cook did stop whatever it was she was doing and her grin went from ear to ear.

“Ach, does that mean the little grey pony will stop eating all the good apples which I need for apple pies and hot apple sauces?”

And then Cook gave me the sort of look which always makes me go quite pink. I could feel my cheeks getting hot and I didn’t know where to look. I only ever take one apple at a time, it’s not like the little grey pony eats the castle out of apple supplies. Greedy as she is, she is only one small pony.

“Oh nonsense Cook, you know there are many more apple trees than the little grey pony could possibly eat her way through.”

Cook laughed heartily.

“Miss Sophie, to be sure it is a pleasure to have you back in my kitchens.”

Honestly, Cook makes no sense whatever. Ever. Was she teasing me again? Again?!

And then Cook bellowed out my friend Serena’s name but Serena was already standing there holding a pile of huge baskets at Cook’s side.

Serena and I smiled at each other and I felt my cheeks return to their normal colour and temperature.

“Go on, be off with you all then. Enjoy the sunshine, my pretties!”

You see. Cook is a pirate.

Serena came with us and Sophie and I had taken our fair share of baskets off Serena so that she could see where to go. It wasn’t very far to the castle’s orchards, and there were a few sheep mowing the lawn and eating the occasional windblown apple on the ground. I bet they were enjoying the apples as much as my little grey pony enjoyed them! And actually, me too, every so often.

“So girls, who wants to collect the apples on the ground for the little grey pony and who wants to climb trees to get apples for us?”

Serena and I looked at each other and we raced each other up into the nearest trees. Apple trees are so easy to climb. They’re such short trees so it’s easy to get a foothold up into the lowest branches. 

Sophie laughed and placed two baskets at the base of the trees Serena and I had climbed. Because Sophie is an actual adult she could just reach up into a tree and twist its apples off. 

I felt a bit sorry for Sophie actually, it was SO MUCH FUN standing up in the tree. Standing up in the apple tree made me think of Sylvie, the apple tree fairy I had met that one time I went into The Other Country to rescue Starnberg. 

So I whispered ‘hello Sylvie’ into the tree’s trunk and I felt sure the leaves all rustled around me in answer not very long afterwards. And there wasn’t any wind today so I’m sure the apple tree was passing on messages from Sylvie’s apple tree to mine! From all that way away!

What I noticed next was that even climbing into the tree had made the branches I was holding onto dance about merrily. While the branches were dancing the apples started falling down onto the ground. 

Apple tree harvesting is so easy and SO MUCH FUN if you are in the apple tree branches! 

“Careful girls, we don’t want to give Cook too many bruised apples. We know how much she’ll mutter…”

Serena laughed.

“Miss Sophie, we’re apple tree dancing!”

I joined in.

“The dance of the apple trees!” I called out. I was beginning to feel quite excited.

“Oh look,” exclaimed Sophie, “you really have found the secret to a quick harvest girls. Have a look at the ground around the trees!”

We looked down and apples surrounded the bottom of the trees we were still standing in. 

I started climbing down and when my feet touched the soft green grass I saw apples all over the orchard’s lawn. 

All the apple trees had helped us in our harvest! And then I remembered that Serena was an actual fairy too and maybe she had asked the trees to help us harvest the apples while we were apple tree dancing. 

I looked over at Serena and she winked back at me.

Serena and I ran around trying to collect all the apples into the huge baskets before the sheep cottoned on to an apple treat. We ran out of basket space and Sophie went to get more baskets from the kitchen storeroom. 

While Sophie was gone Serena and I had a glorious time chasing sheep away from the baskets which were now filled to the top with sweet, juicy apples! It was SO MUCH FUN playing with Serena and the sheep!

There were hardly any windblown apples to store away for the little grey pony. 

When we were finished I promised myself I would take her a normal apple to celebrate a successful and fun day dancing about in apple tree branches to harvest apples for the very cold winter ahead of us!