Hi, everyone! I am very pleased to say that at long last I have created my first multichapter story! I hope you like this first chapter, and I apologize for any OOCness you may find; also, I'm sorry for the choppy transitioning –I'll try and fix that in later chapters.
Enjoy! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Jane and the Dragon, which is rather depressing…
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She has never seen so many foreign wares being sold at one time.
There are silken scarves, in all the colors of the rainbow and more, pots shaped like tiger heads, skirts dripping with sparkling bangles, rings of silver and circlets of gold from far off lands. Swords, bracelets, cloaks, pipes, antidotes, dogs, cushions –anything you could want is sitting politely atop a velvety blanket, available to all and any possible customer.
Or thief.
Jane fingers her sword, hanging gently at her waist within easy reach and exposed to show her squire status; her eyes dart warily about the throng of shoppers, probing the crowd for any sign of disturbance, hair swept behind her ears hastily to avoid it obscuring her vision. She is on high alert, determined to catch someone in the act of a robbery as she was assigned and prove to Gunther that yes, she knows what she's doing!
I wonder where Dragon is, she questions silently, raising her eyes from her job and scanning the cloudless sky for her friend –normally he can be found out taking advantage of such a beautiful day, scaring the shoppers out of their wits with a roar of faked anger and a swoop that just barely brushes the rooftops. But the sky remains empty, devoid of the egotistical green lizard and his entertaining (if sometimes terrifying to the crowds) antics; a quick bolt of fear shoots through her thin frame, blown off almost immediately by a carefree grin and the relocation of Jane's gaze to the people milling about her as she stands still in the middle of the cobbled street. He could be anywhere, she tells herself confidently, tightening her grip around her sword hilt and resuming her duty with a strong stance and a firm face. Probably sleeping the day away and snoring loudly just to be annoying.
"Ah, miss lady knight?" the voice that drags Jane out of her jumbled thoughts is old and frail, with a cracked whistle to the S's that forces her to resist a flinch.
"Yes, sir? How may I be of service?" she replies lightly, turning in the direction of the voice and dipping her head slightly in respect.
The face that meets hers is worn and leathery, laced with wrinkles and pockmarks from a long-ago disease; blue eyes peer from between the excess fold of tanned skin, and they glitter with an intelligence Jane has rarely glimpsed –she tries not to look surprised, but her heart is beating just a little quicker now that she has fully viewed the man who called for her. He smiles at her kindly, exposing a full set of teeth –something generally unheard of among people his age– and Jane gulps; the smile is rather unnervingly false, and it takes quite a lot to keep her feet planted firmly on the cobbled street.
"Ah, yesh," he says, adjusting himself on the mounds of blankets he is seated upon and lifting a worn water jug onto his lap, "I was wondering if you would be so kind as to fetch me a cup of water from the public well, please? I'd do it myself, but my bones are rather weary from such a strenuous journey…" he trails off and looks up at the squire imploringly.
Jane muffles an un-knightly groan –the well is all the way down where Gunther is patrolling! And no doubt he'll make a fuss should he catch her with a water jug, acting as a servant to a stranger. "It would be my pleasure, sir," she says graciously, gently reaching forward and taking the jug from the man's bony fingers. He grins in return, releasing the jug into Jane's custody with a somberness she oddly wants to laugh at.
Suddenly, though, he freezes, reaching a free hand forward and pointing shakily at the sword hung about her waist.
"Are…you…a-a-a…"
Startled, the squire clutches the jug to her chest and backs up a little. "Sir, are you all right?"
The man leans away from her, his eyes wary and no longer condescending. He wrings his hands almost unconsciously, all trace of kindness gone from his face.
"…A Dragon Guardian?" he breathes in shock, staring in awe at Jane –who is still clasping the water jug tightly and trying her best not to show her bafflement.
Apparently, it doesn't work.
After a tense second of scrutinizing Jane, the old man relaxes, his fingers loosening their hold on each other as he allows a smile to stretch his lined cheeks; but this time, it is a suspicious grin, nervous and guarded, more coldly polite than his previous smile.
"Surely you must know, young squire," he says easily, "after all, you carry the sword of a Guardian, do you not?"
Jane swallows. "No, sir," she says in confusion, her throat uncomfortably dry, "I am afraid I do not actually know much about this sword."
The man's eyes widen. "That is quite a claim, squire," he says with a raised eyebrow. Jane notices with a scowl that he has ceased to call her "lady knight."
"It is the truth."
"But you must know of the Dragon Guardians, protectors of the final dragons remaining in this world?" He is teasing her, and Jane does not like it. Not at all.
"I told you already!" she replies, "I know next to nothing about the origins of this sword!" She backs up, fingering the dragon carving on her sword hilt with her free hand –the jug has been shifted to her other hip. "And if you will excuse me, good sir," Jane adds with a wry smile, "it will be a little while before I return with the water you requested. If you will kindly give me a moment…"
And with that, the squire turns and barrels her way into the seething mass of bodies, practically running through the crowd as she lengthens the distance between herself and the unnerving merchant. Dragon Guardians, indeed, she thinks to herself with an eye roll. Sounds like he had too much to drink before the Market started.
She continues on, heading towards the well at a pace barely below running, fingering her sword the entire way.
I'll have to ask Sir Theodore about that tale, she thinks, intrigued despite herself by the man's words. Her interest has been piqued.
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There you have it, folks; the first chapter of my first non-oneshot story! Reviews are love, and if I receive some I'll be so grateful. So please, please review, and tell me what you think! :)