Philippa Gregory - Meridon

‘My Lords, Ladies, Gentlemen; and Honoured Guest!’ Robert bawled. An immediate hush descended on the barn. It was so quiet I could hear Jack tapping his thumbnail against his teeth.

‘Stop that Jack, it’s irritating,’ Dandy said softly.

‘We are proud to present, tonight, and for three nights only, Robert Gower’s Amazing Equestrian and Aerial Show!’

That was our cue. Rea threw his slight weight against the big double doors and thrust them open. Jack wiped the scowl off his face and rode into the ring, head up, smiling. Snow picked up his feet and pranced when he heard them gasp at the size and the beauty of him and tossed his head so that the new ostrich plume waved.

I nodded at Rea who was holding the keeper-reins of the front pony and he sent them in behind, their bells jingling. There was an instant ‘aaahhh!’ from the little children which spread to the adults; as if none of them had ever whipped a horse to death in their lives. I slid a finger under Sea’s girth to check it was tight enough and glanced behind me to see that Dandy was all right. She was up on Morris’s back already and she smiled at me, her satisfied secretive smile.

‘Go on, Merry!’ Rea said urgently, and I dragged my eyes away from Dandy’s smooth inscrutable face and rode into the ring and smiled at the ripple of applause that greeted me. I was not won to vanity by that. They were clapping because I was slim and dainty and because the horse was tall and moved with his head up as proud as a hunter. The lithe slimness of my body gave me a claim to be a beauty in the ring, and the blue riding habit did the rest. Besides, as Robert had taught me, they had paid their money to see beautiful women and fine horses and they would try to see nothing else. I smiled and got another round of applause.

Any vanity I had nurtured would have been put to flight by Dandy and Katie’s entrance. The audience cheered and stamped their feet at the very sight of the girl flyers on the back of the big horse. Katie and Dandy nodded their heads as gracious as a pair of queens. We all did two rounds of the ring before Jack led the way out.

Rea caught the ponies as they came out and turned them around for me to take in. Jack took Sea from me, and led him and Snow to their hitching posts. Dandy was responsible for Morris and Bluebell who knew well enough to go to their place and stand still. Robert had stayed in the ring as we had circled around and bowed to the roar of applause as we went out. He waited a few seconds to give me time to tumble off Sea and stand at the head of the ponies behind the closed barn door. Then when the crowd was hushed again, after the excitement of the opening parade, he cracked his whip and with much flowery introduction presented Mamselle Meridon and the Dancing Ponies!

The act went well. The ponies had been getting better every day since we had been on the road, they were getting their exercise just by moving from one village to another. They had slimmed down too, and they looked better than when I had learned to train them in Robert’s field at Warminster. They watched me carefully enough and I made sure that I made my cues clear to them. Step forward, whips up: stop. Turn around whips held out sideways meant circle round the ring. Whips twirled meant pirouette. We finished the act with them all backing slowly towards the barn door and then kneeling down to take a bow. I stood before them and smiled at the crowd, looking for the man from London.

He was not hard to spot. He sat in the front row smoking a large cigar with a fat glowing ember held perilously close to the bale of straw before him. He was smiling at me, and he put the cigar between his teeth to slide his gloves off his large hands and clap hard: three times. I dipped an awkward little bow – I could never learn Dandy’s graceful sweep of a curtsey – and then I had the ponies circle the ring once more before sending them out and taking another bow before going out myself.

Rea caught the ponies as they came out and took them to their hitching posts. I pulled my smock on over my riding habit as soon as I was out of the ring, and went to help Jack with Bluebell and Morris.

‘She’s gone to get some more drinks and buns,’ Rea said seeing my glance around for Dandy. I nodded. I pulled back the barn door for Jack as he strolled into the ring when his father announced him. Then Rea heaved back the double door and I gave Bluebell and Morris a hearty slap each on the rump and sent them in for Jack’s bareback riding act.

‘Did you need her?’ Rea asked. ‘I could run and fetch her. You don’t need me here.’

‘No,’ I said absently. ‘It’s nothing.’

‘She has a shadow tonight,’ Rea said suddenly.

I jerked up my head to look at him. His eyes were hazy, vague. He saw my stare and he met my eyes and smiled at me. ‘Don’t look so scared Meridon! It’s what my grandma used to say. When she was dukerin – fortune-telling! I just thought that Dandy looked as if she had a shadow.’

‘Is that bad luck?’ I demanded. ‘Would it be bad luck for her to do the trapeze tonight?’

‘It would be bad luck for anyone trying to stop her!’ he said fairly. ‘No. I don’t have the Sight, Meridon. And neither did my grandma, really. I don’t know what made me say it.’

‘Well, keep your mouth shut till you do know,’ I said sharply. ‘And get ready to catch the horses. Jack’s finishing.’

I heard the roar of applause that greeted the end of Jack’s act and Rea hauled the barn doors open and caught Bluebell and Morris as they cantered steadily out. Jack ran after them, his face shiny with sweat, his eyes sparkling.

‘He likes me! He clapped me!’ he said. ‘Da is really pleased!’

‘Good,’ I said dryly, thinking of the measured three claps.

‘Three claps he gave me!’ Jack said as if it were a bouquet of flowers flung at his feet.

‘All three!’ I said sarcastically. Then I turned to get Snow, as I heard Robert inside the barn shout:

‘The amazing, the mind-reading, the magical counting horse!’

Snow went in and I went back to my wagon, pulling off my working smock as I went. Dandy was unpacking food into trays in the men’s wagon and I stripped off my riding habit without anyone to help me with the buttons at the back. I shook out the little red skirt and put it on. The red waistcoat was smart – close-fitting. Mrs Greaves had trimmed it with a little left-over gold braid. It matched the gilt and red flying ribbons in my hair – even if my copper curls clashed appallingly. I tugged my working smock atop the lot and then pushed my bare feet into a pair of clogs and trotted back to the barn for I heard the applause at the end of Robert’s act with Snow.

Bluebell was ready for my rosinback act, with a warm blanket over her so she did not cool after her work with Jack, and fresh rosin on his broad rump.

I kicked off my clogs and Rea gave me a leg-up so I was sitting astride. I got to my feet as we heard Robert starting his patter, and stood balancing carefully on Bluebell’s back: ‘The graceful, the charming, the brilliant Mamselle Meridon!’

There was a burst of applause from inside the barn, I took Bluebell’s strap to steady me and nodded at Rea and he pulled back the door. I went in upright, standing high on Bluebell’s back, the top of my head just clearing the barn door, and there was an ‘oooohhh!’ from the audience as Bluebell thundered into the ring and Robert cracked the whip. I tossed my head and my hair streamed out behind me. I kept my balance, and I did not come off, but I was tired and not ready to work my best, not even for the man from London. Three times we circled the ring, as I got my balance steady and let Bluebell establish her stride. Then Rea came darting out from a crack in the doors with a little gilt stick. He stood at the side of the ring and held it out at shoulder level as Bluebell went cantering around. He dipped it down for me to jump it, and I watched it carefully and then bobbed over, landing solidly and surely on Bluebell’s broad back.