The New Arrival - a Jane and the Dragon fanfic

The New Arrival

Note: this is a story based on a character and idea suggested to me by Shaddowridder221, and starts shortly after the episodes of "Jane and the Dragon".

There once was a lady in waiting, let's call her Jane. That girl wasn't ordinary.

No way for me a lady stuck in waiting, I'd rather battle fire-breathing dragons. I knew I could prove that a girl could be a knight, though my friends all laughed at me, but...

I wouldn't be discouraged and trained in secret, then a dragon pinched the royal prince, and everyone was freaking. So I went alone to the dragon's home, to slay the dragon.

Hey now, hey now now, Jane and the dragon are best friends now.

Dragon's sweet, he let me save the young prince. Then the king made me a knight apprentice.

Hey now, hey now now...

With Dragon's help I'll be a knight someday.

21st Century Tokyo

In an orphanage in Tokyo, Japan, there was a twelve-year-old girl named Sora. When she was six, her parents had abandoned her, and she wound up at the orphanage as a result.

In the six years she had been at the orphanage, Sora had never quite fit in. The other orphans never really accepted her because, as the orphans cruelly put it, "your parents threw you away like garbage, you reject!".

Sora, however, had one escape from the cruel taunts of the other orphans - the TV set in the front room of the orphanage. As the other orphans would play outside, Sora would sit in front of the TV set and watch DVDs of her favorite show, "Jane and the Dragon". Jane's world was so much different than Sora's world. Jane's world was a place where Jane and her friends got along with each other, and had great adventures. Sora longed for such a life.

One afternoon, after some of the orphans had once again cruelly taunted her, and one even hit her, Sora found herself hiding in a room near the back of the orphanage. Sora laid down on the floor and started gently sobbing. "Oh, please take me from this cruel place!" Sora sobbed as she lay on the floor.

Sora then started getting tired, and started to fall asleep, while thinking over and over again how she wanted to be away from the orphanage.

On this afternoon, fate would be kind to Sora.

9th Century Kippernium

In the sky above Kippernia Castle, Jane and Dragon were on patrol. As the two flew, with Jane sitting on Dragon's neck, she noticed something in the corner of the castle courtyard.

"Dragon, take us down" Jane commanded. "I see something out of place in the courtyard".

"And just when I was enjoying this flight" Dragon sighed as he started to land in the courtyard.

In a few moments, Dragon landed in the courtyard as Jane hopped off of him. Jane quickly walked over to the corner of the castle courtyard and discovered a girl her age curled up into a ball, asleep. The girl had red hair, and was wearing a yellow t-shirt, blue jeans, and black shoes that had red on the sides. The girl was also wearing pink gloves, as well a blue hat.

"What have we here?" Dragon inquired.

"I'm not quite sure" Jane answered, puzzled. "She's obviously not from around here".

The girl then woke up, noticed her surroundings, and became nervous.

"Where am I?" the girl asked.

"You are in the courtyard of Kippernia Castle" Jane answered. "And you are?".

"My name is Sora" the girl replied.

"I'm Jane" Jane greeted as she extended her hand to Sora, and helped Sora up.

"Jane?!" Sora exclaimed. "As in Jane Turnkey?".

"Yes" Jane answered. "But how did you know?".

"Your well known where I come from" Sora acknowledged. "There's a TV show about you and your adventures with Dragon".

"I'm not sure what a TV is" Jane said, puzzled by the term.

"That's right" Sora said to herself. "This is the 9th Century, way before any kind of modern day technology".

"And where are you from, Sora?" Jane asked.

"A place called Tokyo" Sora answered. "I'm an orphan, and, as incredible as this may seem, I'm from the future".

"How did you get here, Sora?" Jane wanted to know.

"I laid down after being taunted by the other orphans" Sora started. "As I was going to sleep, I wished that I could leave that horrible place. The next thing I know, I woke up here with you standing over me".

"Could she be a witch?" Dragon asked Jane.

"I can assure you I'm no witch" Sora said to Dragon. "However, I can't explain how I got here".

"Lets go see King Caradoc" Jane announced. "He will want to meet our new arrival"

Jane showed Sora to the great hall where King Caradoc, Queen Gwendolyn, and Jane's mother were talking.

"Who do we have here?" King Caradoc asked as Jane and Sora entered.

"This is a visitor to our castle, King Caradoc" Jane answered. "Her name is Sora".

"It's very nice to meet you, young lady" King Caradoc smiled at Sora. "What brings you to our castle?".

Sora explained about her life at the orphanage, how she had wished to be anywhere than there, and how she found herself in the castle courtyard.

"I'm very sorry to hear you were treated badly" King Caradoc sadly said to Sora. "Children deserve to be treated better".

"What should be done with her, my king?" Jane's mother asked.

"We don't know if young Sora here will be called back to where she came from or not" King Caradoc pointed out. "However, as long as she is here, she will be treated with kindness".

"Adeline" Queen Gwendolyn turned to Jane's mother, "please see that Sora is given a room here in the castle".

"I'll see to it immediately, my queen" Jane's mother acknowledged as she gently took Sora's hand. The two then walked out of the great hall.

Sora settles in

Starting the next day, Sora got to know those in the castle. She watched Smithy as he took care of the horses, and kept the swords of the knights sharpened. Jester entertained her with his jokes. She helped Rake take care of royal garden. Sora also helped Pepper in the kitchen.

Sora also got to know young Princess Lavinia. The young princess would ask Sora about the world that Sora came from. As Sora would describe the world she had come from, Lavinia would listen with interest, finding Sora's descriptions to be very fascinating. As the two talked, Jane's mother watched from a distance. Jane's mother saw that Sora was very kind with Lavinia, and that gave Jane's mother an idea.

Every night, Sora would go to bed, half expecting to wake up back in the orphanage. Every morning, Sora would wake up relieved to find that she was still in the castle.

A month passed, and it was clear that Sora would be staying at the castle. Shortly afterward, Jane's mother and father, along with Jane, approached Sora with an offer. A day after that, Sora, Jane, Jane's father, and Jane's mother approached King Caradoc and Queen Gwendolyn.

"What may we do for you, royal Chamberlain?" King Caradoc asked Jane's father, who was in charge of kingdom's finances.

"My wife, my daughter, Sora, and I have discussed something among ourselves, and Sora is agreeable" Jane's father started. "We would very much like to adopt Sora, and make her part of our family.

"Since it is obvious that Sora is here to stay, I give you my blessing" King Caradoc smiled.

"Has Sora expressed what she would like to do with her future?" Queen Gwendolyn inquired.

"I have, my queen" Sora answered. "Mrs. Turnkey and I have discussed it, and I would like to be trained as a lady-in-waiting, if that is acceptable?".

"It is a noble profession" Queen Gwendolyn smiled in approval.

"Indeed" King Caradoc added with a smile. "It shall be done".

"Thank you my king, my queen" Sora said gratefully.

Shortly afterward, the legal arrangements were made, and Sora became a member of the Turnkey family.

A few weeks later, Jane climbed aboard Dragon as the two got ready to go on a patrol.

"See you later, Jane" Sora, who was now wearing a gown, smiled as she stood in the courtyard.

"Be back in a little while, Sora" Jane smiled back.

"See you later, Dragon" Sora smiled at Dragon.

"See you later, Sora" Dragon smiled back.

Jane and Dragon then took off from the courtyard when Princess Lavinia raced up.

"Oh!" Lavinia said, disappointed. "Did I miss them?".

"They will be back in a little while, young princess" Sora reassured Lavinia. "Meanwhile, it's time for your nap".

"Oh, must I?" Lavinia pleaded.

"You'll want to be well rested when Jane and Dragon return from their patrol" Sora pointed out with a smile.

"Then a nap it will be" Lavinia smiled back.

As Sora happily walked Lavinia into the castle, Jane and Dragon looked down at the scene and smiled. It was nice seeing Sora happy.

Jane and Sora became close sisters. Jane enjoyed having Sora around, especially since Sora understood Jane's desire to be a knight. Sora's presence also had an effect on Jane's mother. Now that Sora was training to be a lady-in-waiting, Jane's mother starting letting up on Jane, allowing Jane more leeway to become a knight. At the next ball, Jane's mother even allowed Jane to attend the ball wearing her knight's outfit.

For Sora, she finally had what she had longed for - a home, a family, and happiness. It was a dream come true.

Meanwhile, in 21st Century Tokyo

Sora had been missing for about two months. The authorities had searched high and low for Sora, but with no luck. It was as if Sora had disappeared off the face of the earth.

One day, while the orphans were out playing, a woman sat in the front room of the orphanage. The woman was Miss Yumico, the director of the orphanage.

"Where are you, Sora?" Miss Yumico thought to herself. "What has happened to you?".

As Miss Yumico looked across the room, she saw the "Jane and the Dragon" DVDs which Sora had so loved to watch. Miss Yumico got up and picked up the plastic case which held the "Jane and the Dragon" DVDs, and opened it. Inside the plastic case was a card which listed all the twenty-six episodes of the TV series. Suddenly, Miss Yumico's eyesight became blurry for a few moments. When her eyesight returned to normal, she looked at the card to discover there were now twenty-seven episodes on the DVDs.

"That's strange" Miss Yumico thought to herself. "I always thought there were only twenty-six episodes".

Miss Yumico then looked at the last episode listed on the card - Episode 27: Jane's Sister. Miss Yumico put the DVD which contained the episode into the DVD player, and brought up the new episode. As Miss Yumico watched, the new episode detailed how a girl from the future named Sora arrived in 9th Century Kippernium, and was eventually adopted by the Turnkey family. The girl in the episode looked exactly like Sora from the orphanage.

Miss Yumico cried as she watched the episode. But they were not tears of sadness. They were instead tears of happiness.

"I don't know how you did it, Sora?" Miss Yumico thought to herself with a smile. "You managed to transport yourself to a world where you have found a family and happiness. Good for you, Sora. Good for you".

Back in 9th Century Kippernium

Six years had passed since Sora had come to the castle. Everybody was assembled in the great hall ... all except Jane and Sora. The two eighteen-year-old girls were in a room near the great hall.

"I can't believe this day has come" Jane remarked.

"You've earned this, Jane" Sora smiled. "Today, you become a knight".

At that point, the door to the room opened, and in walked a twelve-year-old Princess Lavinia.

"Jane" Lavinia started, "they are ready for you".

"Be right there, princess" Jane smiled at Lavinia.

"Just one second" Sora stopped Jane as Sora pulled out a cloth. "Let me shine this one area of your new armor. We want you looking perfect".

"Thank you" Jane smiled.

As soon as Sora was finished, she, Jane, and Lavinia walked to the great hall. Sora and Lavinia stepped to the side of the hall, while Jane walked up to Sir Theodore who was standing in the middle of the hall.

"Having come of age, and after having completed her training, it is with great honor that I announce that Jane Turnkey is now ready to become a full knight of Kippernium" Sir Theodore announced.

At that point, King Caradoc walked up, and produced his sword.

"Jane Turnkey" King Caradoc started, "as King of Kippernium, I hereby grant onto you the title of Knight of Kippernium, with all the rights and privileges associated with that title". King Cardoc then touched the tip of his sword to each of Jane's shoulders, and turned to the crowd. "I give you Miss Jane Turnkey, Knight of Kippernium".

Everybody clapped at Jane's good fortune. As everybody came up to Jane, Sora stood beside her adopted mother, Adeline Turnkey. Sora noticed that her mother had a tear coming down one of her cheeks.

"Are you crying, Mother?" Sora asked.

"I'm really quite proud of Jane today" Adeline smiled. "I still wish Jane had followed in my footsteps and become a lady-in-waiting, but Jane's dream has come true, and I am happy for her".

Sora smiled, seeing Adeline's pride in Jane.

"I believe we have another honor to bestow" Queen Gwendolyn announced. "Sora Turnkey, please step forward".

Sora stepped forward, and faced Queen Gwendolyn.

"Since you have recently come of age, Sora, it is my honor to bestow onto you the title of lady-in waiting" Queen Gwendolyn smiled at Sora.

"Thank you, my queen" Sora said gratefully.

"The daughters of Turnkey have made their parents proud today" Queen Gwendolyn announced. "Jane Turnkey, Knight of Kippernium, and Sora Turnkey, lady-in-waiting".

Everybody clapped for Jane and Sora. Musicians then started playing music, as everybody started to dance.

"Princess Lavinia" Sora smiled as she looked at Lavinia, "I believe somebody would like to give their first dance to you".

Lavinia looked to see Jane standing there, holding out her hand.

"Princess, would you like to dance?" Jane smiled at Lavinia.

"I would be honored, Jane" Lavinia smiled back as she and Jane started to dance.

Sora smiled seeing Jane and Lavinia dance. As Sora watched everybody dance, a twenty-year-old Smithy walked up to Sora.

"May I have this dance, Sora?" Smithy smiled.

"I would like that, Smithy" Sora smiled back.

Sora and Smithy started to dance, enjoying each other's company. The truth be told, the two had become close over the past two years, and it looked like the two would be married at some point.

During a break in the dancing, Adeline walked up to Jane and Sora.

"I wanted to say I am quite proud of the two of you" Adeline started. "I have two fine daughters".

"Thank you, Mother" Jane said gratefully.

"Yes, thank you, Mother" Sora added with a grateful tone.

As the music resumed, a twenty-year-old Gunther approached. He had been a knight since he came of age when he turned eighteen.

"Congratulations, Jane" Gunther said.

"Why, thank you, Gunther" Jane responded, taken a little off guard.

"Would you care to dance, Jane?" Gunther said, a bit nervous.

"Okay" Jane agreed, nervous herself.

Jane and Gunther started dancing, and soon got comfortable with the idea of dancing together. As the two danced, Dragon watched through an open window.

"Well, well, well" Dragon said to himself with a chuckle while looking at Jane and Gunther. "Looks like our two children are growing up".

The next day

In the courtyard of the castle, Jane and Dragon were getting ready to go on their daily patrol. As Jane was climbing aboard Dragon, Sora and Princess Lavinia walked up.

"I just wanted to see you off, Jane" Lavinia smiled.

"Well, that's very kind of you, Princess Lavinia" Jane smiled back.

"You two have yourselves a good flight" Lavinia wished Jane and Dragon.

"Remember, Princess" Dragon started, "you and I are scheduled to go flying tomorrow".

"Oh, I can hardly wait" Lavinia beamed.

"Jane" Sora started, "Pepper was wondering if you came across any apples, could you pick her some? She's looking to bake some apple pies".

"Yum" Dragon smacked his lips. "That sounds delicious".

"Consider it done" Jane smiled at Sora.

Dragon then took flight, with Jane sitting on his neck.

"Well, Princess" Sora started, "it's time for yours and Prince Cuthbert's lesson".

"It's such a nice day out, Sora" Lavinia pleaded. "Do we have to go to school?".

"I think you'll like today's lesson" Sora smiled. "We're going to learn about ... the history of dragons".

"Oh, what a wonderful surprise!" Lavinia exclaimed in glee.

"Meet me in the library" Sora instructed Lavinia. "I'll be along in a few minutes".

As Lavinia walked inside the castle, Sora looked up and saw Jane and Dragon flying in the distance. Jane and Dragon were having fun flying and talking to each other. Sora smiled seeing Jane and Dragon together. Sora then found herself lost in thought for a few moments.

"Do I miss my old life?" Sora thought to herself. "The answer is no. I had nothing there. I have everything here - a home, a family, happiness ... and a purpose. I wouldn't trade Kippernium for anything".

Sora then started walking toward the castle. As she stepped inside, Sora smiled. Everything was right with the world, with a future that held great promise. It was truly a dream come true.