A/N: Jatd4ever – you have won. This isn't sad either. I couldn't make it sad.

This was requested by jatd4ever. The prompt was something about Jane/Dummy and "If you were alive, we could have a real fight". I hope I did it justice. I don't own JATD.

Learning to lose

(Or "Accepting defeat is hard when dished out by a dummy")

As a knight's apprentice Jane was no stranger to failure or frustration, because sometimes losing a battle was a better lesson than winning; it taught you humility and a willingness to accept when you are wrong and to acknowledge your failures, and to learn from them, so as to better yourself in the future.

The redhead could accept losing to Gunther, because he was incredibly skilled at both footwork and handling a sword and shield, but it didn't mean she had to like it. Gunther was insufferable when he won and he kept bragging about it until she firmly squished his toes beneath her boot and strode off with whatever dignity she had left.

The fourteen year old girl could also admit defeat to Pepper when they were having a good old bake-off, because Pepper had been cooking for years before Jane had, and Jane didn't mind losing to the younger girl, because Pepper truly was a humble soul and she always made Jane feel better (and a very nice cup of coffee).

But losing to a bloody dummy wasn't something she was about to take lying down.

She heaved her wooden sword forward, causing the dummy to spin around quickly, and his sword knocking hers from her hand.

She sighed in frustration, picked up her weapon up and rested into her stance (bent knees, on the balls of her feet and raised arms), her sword in both hands, raised to attack. She thrust forward, danced out of the way of the dummy's sword before it could knock her blade from her grasp again, but his shield knocked her on her bum, causing her to let out a little shriek.

"You fiend!" She yelled at the lopsided eye of the rag doll, it seemed to be smirking at her, "If you were alive, we could have a real fight!"

"You're yelling at the dummy, Jane," Jester said behind her, "What's wrong? You usually win this guy all the time." Jester put his arm around the sack of hay and gave its shoulder a pitying pat. Jane rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm simply having an off day, Jester, nothing to worry about." She said, sticking her nose in the air. Jester laughed again, and she stuck him in the armpit with her timber blade. "I've been training for two years, Jester, don't think I can't hurt you with this thing."

"I'm absolutely petrified, Jane… but the dummy here will protect me." He batted his eyelashes at her innocently, and she surged forward with a frustrated groan, her blade poking where Jester just was, but instead she hit the dummy, causing it to spin around. She ducked, jumped and swung her sword in the air, hitting it on the head. Had it been human and had sword been the one Dragon said she could keep, it would have had a crushed skull broken in several different places.

She made a little sound of delight. Later Jester would tell her it was a very cute sound.

"Well done, Jane!" Jester applauded her, "Now make him pay for that slap on the bum earlier."

. . .

A/N: I thought it was cute, okay? Tell me if you agree or disagree.