Author Note: Hey everybody. So this is my first venture into Dave x Jade, even though it is a bit unconventional. This story is going to be part of a series I'm writing; the first of hopefully many looks into this AU world.
I wiped my sword on the grass, not wanting to stain it's sheathe with blood. The fresh blood came free easily. A wolf was sprawled out on the ground in front of me; a steady stream of red dripped from its throat. It would not walk away from this fight. I remained uninjured. A light breeze barely disturbed the trees surrounding us. My armor glinted in the sunlight and a pair or specially made armored glasses covered my eyes, protecting them from the sun's harsh rays. I forgot my helmet at home this morning; my scalp relished the warmth.
As I sheathed my sword I heard a slow clapping behind me, shattering the silence. I turned my head slowly; not wanting to seem startled. It was only Bro, so I allowed my muscles to relax.
"Good work, little bro." He swung one arm around my shoulder, pulling me close. I grunted, but didn't shove him away. "I was just talking to the panel; they want to see you." Bro's voice was serious despite his ever present smirk.
I tried to move away from Bro, but his arm was like a vice grip on my back. "Awesome." I squirmed in his grip.
"Yep." Bro started guiding me back towards town, hefting the still bleeding wolf corpse under one arm. "I can't believe you grew up so fast." He ruffled my hair with one free hand, and I was finally able to escape his grip.
"I'm not that old." I fixed my hair; it wasn't ironic all messed up like that. "I'm barely 18. You're the one who's old." It was a low blow, but Bro and I often joked around like this.
He just shrugged, "Perhaps." I was only about half a kilometer out of town, and we covered the distance quickly. Despite the warmth of the current season, the forest was quiet today. My armor rattled over the silence; the animals learned to hide from that sound.
The walls of Prospit stood at about ten meters tall; keeping even the largest creatures out. There were two gates in and out of the city, one in the north and one in the south. Bro and I entered through the north entrance, waving to the guards as we passed. They didn't wave back. Only one of them stepped out of line to greet us, but all he wanted was the corpse so it couldn't spread disease in the city. The Queen's soldiers monitored everything coming in and out of Prospit.
Bro and I weaved through the dense crowds towards the palace. We strolled through the market, enjoying the smell of freshly baked bread as we passed. It was a nice change from the stench of dead wolf.
If I hadn't seen the castle a thousand and one times, I might have marveled at its splendor. It rose above every other building in town, decorated with fantastic statues and a myriad of colors. Fantastic tapestries adorned nearly every wall, weaving vivid stories of war. I didn't give any of it a second glance as the guards let us in the front. The panel resided in one of the rooms on the second floor, and it didn't take long for Bro and I to reach it.
A heavy wooden door stood between me and my future. I gulped once before knocking.
"Come in." A deep voice echoed. Bro gave me one last pat on the back, and I pushed the door open. Its hinges squeaked once as it moved.
As I stepped into the room, Bro shut the door behind me. It made that same pitiful sound, and I briefly wondered if this was a trap. It could be one last test, designed to kill those unworthy. But when I looked to the front of the room, the sight of the panel reassured me, if only slightly.
Seven men sat in a line, all facing me. Being the elders of our knighting program, each of them displayed a spectacular beard. This made me wonder why I had so much trouble trying to grow one; perhaps it was ironic. The room was only half filled with light; the few candles were placed behind the panel and allowed them to cast long shadows across the room.
"Young Dave Strider." The man in the center addressed me, and I stood at attention while he spoke. "We have come to a decision on your knighthood. You have passed." I smiled to myself, but didn't relax yet; a knight must never let down his guard.
"Thank you sir." I bowed once before making my escape. Something about the panel always made me nervous. The door didn't squeak on the way out, or it could just be I didn't pay it any attention. Bro stood on the other side with bated breath. I nodded at him once, and he broke out in a grin. It was contagious; I couldn't help but grin as well. The next phase of my life was about to begin.
"Congrats little bro." We walked away from the room together. "I knew you would make it."
"Thanks." It was like the world was lifted off my shoulders; I held my head high. "I have to go tell John." My best friend would want to know immediately.
Bro chuckled, "see you later then." He reached out to ruffle my hair again, but hesitated half way there and retracted his arm with a slight frown. I pretended not to notice and jogged away from Bro with one last wave, heading towards the practice courtyard to find John. The pair of us grew up together in this castle. We trained together ever since we were ten years old. I became a knight before him, but I was sure he would catch up soon. He should have been training, so that is where I went to look for him.
I was right. I found John hacking away at a practice dummy fervently. "John!" I called over to him. With one last violent thrust, he buried his sword in the dummy. When he turned to address me, he left it there. If the dummy could bleed, it would be dripping its life force all over the floor.
"Dave!" He practically skipped towards me. "Where'd you go today man? I thought we were gonna train together." His lower lip stuck out beneath two buckteeth in an attention demanding pout.
I shrugged in indifference, "There was a wolf that needed killing, so I killed it."
John sighed once, his pout fading. "I would have gone with you."
"I needed to take care of it alone. It could have helped with my knight trials." I grinned at the slightly shorter boy. "By the way, I passed."
"Congratulations!" John slapped my shoulder. "I knew you would pass."
"Thanks man." We fist bumped.
"When's the ceremony going to be?"
"I don't know, probably this weekend."
"Cool." John's smile shrank a few molars. "My trials will probably be next."
"You'll do great. After all, isn't that what this extra training is for?"
"Yeah." John turned back towards where he left his sword. "I should probably get back to that." He waved one hand over his shoulder. "Later man. Say 'Hi' to Rose for me."
I would do no such thing.
I left him to his training, wondering what I should do next. I ended up sitting in a window, watching the sun inch around the earth; ironically, of course.
After a while, my pondering was interrupted by Sir Scratch. He was an advisor to the queen, and also a celebrated knight. He carried a sword disguised as a cane, which he leaned on in everyday life. I'd seen him fight before; he didn't need the cane. I was always careful around him; he had irons in all the fires. We only had a brief conversation on this occasion; he merely wanted to congratulate me and with me luck on my first mission, which was sure to come soon. It didn't take long for him to leave me to my thoughts.
It was nearly sunset when Bro appeared beside me.
"Yo" I rose from my perch, brushing some dust off my armor.
"You ready to head home?" Bro questioned. I nodded and followed him out of the castle. We lived one block over, in a small one story house. My one year elder sister, Rose, lived with us. I had a second sister named Roxy, but a few years ago she got married and moved out. Nowadays, Rose looked after the house and kept everything in order. It was nearing time to arrange a marriage for her, and me as well, but I tried not to think about it. Bro still wasn't married, and he was way older than we were. Nonetheless, I was determined not to tell her that John said 'Hi'.
Rose had already set the table when we arrived home. She needed some help with finishing dinner, so after hanging my armor up I lent her a quick hand. I was okay at cooking; I could chop things up without cutting my fingers off, but most recipes were beyond me. There were only a few things left to do, and soon we sat down to eat together.
It was time to break the news. "Rose." The dopey grin from earlier in the day returned to my face, "I passed."
Her expression barely changed, but I could tell she was pleased. "When is the knighting ceremony?"
Bro answered for me. "I spoke with the knight master, it's on Saturday. Afterward he'll be given his first proper assignment." He grimaced slightly; it was an extremely short period of time between knighting and assignment. Most young knights were given at least a day to rest.
"The king must have need of his talents." Rose added between bites. This did not seem to relieve Bro in the slightest. If anything, the folds on his forehead furrowed a bit deeper.
"It's not a big deal." I waved one hand in the air, "I can handle whatever they throw at me. I'm a Strider, after all."
"Yeah." Bro returned to his food, a contemplative look on his face. Rose smirked at me and I rolled my eyes in return. We finished the evening peacefully.
Saturday arrived before I knew it, and I found myself contemplating what to wear for the ceremony. I didn't want to seem too pompous, but it wasn't exactly a casual situation. My usual armor was too dinged to suit the occasion, so I ended up wearing my only set of silk clothing. It was a little tight, but I made do. I left my glasses home.
I met Bro in the front hallway of our house. Rose wasn't coming with us; females who didn't work for the government were only allowed in the castle on official business. A knighting did not count. Bro looked me up and down as I approached, nodding once in approval. In his hands he held a sheathed blade. The hilt was embedded with a few gemstones, which meant this sword must have some value to it. I'd seen it before but couldn't remember where.
"Here" Bro offered it to me. "This was our fathers. He would have wanted you to have it."
I accepted it from him gingerly, unsheathing it an inch to look at the blade. It reflected my red eyes perfectly, and I hastily re-sheathed it. "Thank you." I made sure not to stutter. I strapped the intimidating weapon to my hip, removing my old blade with a resolute nod. The heirloom sparkled in the sun as Bro and I made the brief walk to the castle.
A few people nodded at us as we passed by, though the guards were silent as usual. Bro snatched John on the way up. We made it to the throne room in no time at all. The herald announced our presence, and we were allowed to enter. Bro and John stood off to one side as I approached our queen.
Queen Peixes had been ruling our kingdom for 60 years. She had a firm handle on the government even before the King's untimely demise. Her only heir was her granddaughter, Feferi Peixes. She ruled with an iron fist, and succeeded in expanding our territory without much bloodshed. The people loved her. All knights of the kingdom swore fealty to her upon coming of age.
I approached her with my head bowed; I could feel her fierce gaze on the top of my head. She rose from her throne and met me a few steps away from it. I kneeled in front of her.
"Dave Strider." She addressed me, raising both arms slightly.
"Your Highness." I somehow managed to respond. I realized that she needed my sword for the ceremony, so I unsheathed it and held it flat for her. She took it with one firm hand.
"Do you swear to serve the kingdom of Prospit with your life, in sickness and in health?"
"I do"
"Do you swear to serve the throne until your last breath, doing whatever it may require of you?"
"I do"
"Then I dub thee, Dave Strider, Knight of Prospit." She brushed the sword over each of my shoulders. "You may rise and serve your kingdom."
End Note: So that's it for the first chapter. I hope you guys liked it.
Edit: Hey joe, I don't know if you're ever going to come back and read this again, but since you weren't logged into the website when you reviewed I can't send you a private message. Flash step is also impossible. A regular human being, regardless of what they're wearing, can't flash step. All I ask for is a little suspension of disbelief.