Okay, so this has been coming on for a little bit too long, sorry about that. And it's a bit random too, so bare with me. /;) This chappie is for my dear friend tinytruefan. Here goes absolutely nothing!
Disclaimer: Own nothing. Except the plotline, of course.
Jane and Jester walked back through the gates and across the courtyard until they reached the kitchens. Jester went in but when Jane didn't follow him he doubled back with a questioning look on his face.
Jane responded, saying only, "I…left my practice sword in the yard…I need to retrieve it…" He nodded and left her. Jane walked slowly away; she heard only the beginning of the conversation coming from the kitchen following the sound of Jester's light cough and Pepper's squeal of dismay.
"Ssh!"
"Who have you been fighting? It was not Gunther was it?"
"Pepper! No one…"
"You look a proper mess!"
"Oh thank you, so very much milady!"
Jane smiled wistfully to herself. Lately, her conversations with Jester never seemed as jocular and friendly as that anymore. They had always come to each other for help and advice; she could always count on him. They were noticeably closer friends than any of the others.
It was always the same with him and Pepper, her scoffing at his lofty, clever air he always held about himself. And him pretending he knew nothing. Such an innocent, she thought, chuckling to herself. The feeling soon subsided however, as she began to feel melancholy again, to wonder what had gone wrong. She felt for certain that something had come between her and her long time old friend, and she was too concerned not to at least try and find out what it was.
As Jane wandered aimlessly around the jousting yard, too deeply lost in her own thoughts to care where she was going or what she was supposed to have been doing in the first place, she missed looking up to see one squire Gunther crossing the bridge across the battlements to come down and collect his evening meal. She also missed looking up to see where she was going.
Perhaps, logically speaking, if Gunther hadn't had the spur of the moment idiotic thought of yelling out Jane's name just as she was about to walk into her practice dummy, she wouldn't have become so distracted, therefore she wouldn't have walked so fast into the dummy, therefore, maybe, she wouldn't have thrown back as hard as she was.
Gunther was laughing hard. A mean laugh. Jane got to her feet, angrily brushing dust of herself and cursing Gunther to oblivion under her breath, just as he came out of the tower wearing a smirk Jane knew all too well.
"What this time Gunther?" Jane grumbled tonelessly, not particularly wanting to give him time to produce an answer.
Gunther strode up and leant lazily on the wall nearby, smirking. "Alright Jane? Having a bad day, are we now?"
Jane wanted to kick him, so very badly. "Fine, Gunther, Have you seen my practice sword by any chance?"
Sneer. Smirk. "Why so tense?"
"Mind your own business! And I am not tense…" Jane exclaimed, annoyed.
"You are." Gunther persisted, still smirking. "And just as hot tempered as ever, I see."
"What exactly is that supposed to mean Gunther?!" She spat at him. She was starting to go red in the face.
"Oh nothing, nothing…"
This is getting ridiculous, Jane thought. She took a deep breath and tried very hard to calm her anger. She knew Gunther was not worth it, and that she was being irrational. Gunther was only trying to wind her up, as usual. It wouldn't be so bad if he didn't have to do it every day, the bog weevil, she thought hotly. Then she said, slowly, articulately and as calmly as she could muster;
"Gunther, one more time, just for clarity, I don't think I caught your answer the first time. Now, have you seen my practice sword anywhere around here?"
"Anywhere around here? Well, come to think of it……………………..erm……………………NO."
Jane sighed. "Are you sure?"
"Positive" He drawled out, and then yawned.
"You haven't seen it anywhere at all? No where?" She tried, stiffly.
He stared at her. Then-
SMIRK.
Oh, fine then, I shan't waste my precious time and breath bothering to ask again! Really the silliness of it…" And with that, Jane stormed off to the kitchens to join her friends, leaving Gunther to wallow in his so-called victory over his fellow squire.
As Jane approached the table where her friends sat, eating their own supper, she noticed that one familiar figure was absent.
"Where is Jester?" She asked, sitting down opposite Smithy and Rake.
Pepper came out of the kitchen wiping a baking dish with an old cloth. "In his tower." She replied off handedly. "He said he wasn't hungry, and I suppose the loss of that tooth must have been paining him as well." She set a plate of stew down in front of Jane. Jane paused.
"Actually, I'm not hungry anymore either Pepper." She stood up out of her seat and made to walk away. She turned around at the last minute, however, and said, ignoring the stunned looks on her friends faces; "Thankyou anyway, though. Goodnight everyone…" Then, without waiting for them to wish her a good night, or anything else of like, turned and walked briskly away into the night. She only caught the start of their hushed conversation.
"That's odd. She usually has such a large appetite…"
Hope you liked it. Plz R&R!!!
