A/N Happy fall! I may have had a little too much fun with this one.

It takes place near the beginning of Lioness Rampant. Enjoy!

Jonathan looked down at the note Stefan had stealthily handed him.

"He's back" was all it said.

Jonathan crumpled the note as a surge of bitterness welled up in him. How dare George take advantage of his fight with Alanna and bed her so quickly after she had refused the prince's proposal? Did he think Jonathan wouldn't find out? And now he, what, wanted to pretend like nothing had changed?

Nevertheless, two days later he found himself sneaking off to the lower city.

"Johnny!" George greeted loudly from this place of honor in the Dancing Dove. "Tis good to see you, my friend! I hope business has been good in my absence?"

"Indeed it has. Perhaps I can tell you about it someplace more private?"

"Of course," George said, getting up. "Right this way."

"Actually, I had another spot in mind. Up for a little walk?" the prince asked.

"Lead on."

"You wouldn't be leadin' me into an assassination attempt would you?" George asked amiably once they were out on the street.

"I can't say I didn't consider it, but no, I've decided not to kill you. 'Brethren before wenches,' right?" Jonathan said matter-of-factly.

"Well, that's a comfort. So where are we going?"

"Myles's home. I want to be sure we aren't overheard, and his house in the city isn't far."

Once they were alone in a windowless sitting room, George bowed deeply to Jonathan and said, "I am glad you came to see me. I wasn't sure if you would."

"You're bowing to me now?" Jonathan asked tartly.

"We're in your domain with no secrets to keep. It seemed appropriate. And I'm still not sure that you won't change your mind about killin' me," George replied as he straightened.

Jonathan smiled thinly and gestured for the other man to sit. "True friends are rare indeed for men in our position. I wasn't about to lose two such friendships in one go."

"You were never in danger of losing either of us," George replied.

"I'm not so sure," Jonathan said darkly.

"Well, that's up to you."

"Of course you would take her side," Jonathan snapped.

"I wasn't takin' sides, but if we're going to do this, I think you should both stop being so bull-headed. I'm sure you both said some cutting things in the heat of the moment. But she didn't reject you, Jonathan, in fact, she's chosen to stand by you a thousand times over. She rejected the notion of being queen."

Jonathan glared, but George pressed on undeterred. "She went through all that lying and sneaking to become a knight. Your knight. And now she's achieved that, and you're asking her to give it up.

"I wasn't aware being queen was such a demotion," Jonathan responded acidly.

"And I supposed you've never complained of your royal responsibilities?"

Jonathan looked away.

"I literally killed for the right to call myself king, and I'm not ashamed to say that I enjoy it- the power, the intrigue, the deference from people who despise me but can't risk my anger. Of course, it has its irksome moments, but it's a high stakes game of both action and subtleties, and I thrive on it.

You, prince, were born into it. You know the rules well, and if you're honest, most of the time you like it too. Mayhap that's what makes us such fast friends. But Alanna is no politician. She speaks her mind and sees the world in black and white. She's the person you want by your side on the battlefield, and she's a refreshing break from the constant jockeying and showmanship of holding court. Mayhap that's why we're both so attracted to her. But is she really the person you want by your side at tea time with a foreign monarch looking for an excuse to start a war? She hates court games, and worse, she knows she's bad at them. Can you blame her for not wanting to be put in that position?"

"But it's okay for you to make her the queen of thieves?" Jonathan spat back.

"I've kept her as far from my line of work as I can. And if you hadn't noticed, I haven't made any more progress in winning her hand than you."

An uncomfortable silence stretched between them.

"How is she?" Jonathan finally asked.

"She's well, but restless. She moped over you for a long while, if you must know. She wouldn't tell me what happened or return my affections until she heard you had a new lover. Now she's headed back out adventurin' with Coram in tow, and gods only know what mischief she'll find.

Jonathan nodded slowly.

"I won't apologize for pursuing her," George continued. "I love her, and I don't care if you or anyone else knows it. I am sorry for your pain though. And hers. I've no wish to make it worse."

"I can't truly blame you," Jonathan responded. "And you're not wrong about her being ill-suited to becoming queen. But for Mithros' sake, she's the only woman who has loved me for my own sake and not my throne. And yet that cursed throne is the reason she won't marry me."

"That's the way it always goes, isn't it?"

Their conversation continued, growing more relaxed as the afternoon wore on, and they left in much better spirits than when they came in.

Their road home took them both through the marketplace, where they paused to listen to a newly-arrived merchant who was shouting the latest gossip to an eager audience.

"...And I've news of the Lioness," he was saying. "She's taken up with the Shang Dragon. On a glorious quest, they are, but not neglecting to take time for pleasure, if you know what I mean," he said with a leer. "I heard it from a reliable source that they share a bedroll every night."

Jonathan and George exchanged a look then changed course abruptly, heading back the way they had come.

"The Shang Dragon? The gods-cursed Shang Dragon!?"

Jonathan and George were back at Myles's home, this time looking through his liquor collection. Jonathan selected a stiff vintage and poured them both large glasses.

"I'm not saying I was expecting her to wait for me or anythin', but...the SHANG DRAGON!?"

Half the bottle later, they were back to lounging in Myles's sitting room.

"I thought no one could top us - the dashing heir to the throne," Jonathan said gesturing to himself, "and the charming but deadly rogue," he said waving a hand at George.

George nodded vigorously. "I was sure you were my only competition. And that was competition enough. Now I have to compete with the bleedin' Shang Dragon too?"

"Why couldn't she have found the Shang Fruit Bat or the Shang Dragonfly? But no, it had to be the best of them."

"Do those exist?"

"I don't know. Probably not. But there are certainly lesser Shang masters that you and I could take in a fight. The Dragon, though, could definitely kill us!"

"That he could," George agreed miserably. "But don't be underestimatin' fruit bats."

That's how Myles found them when he returned home: drunk and brooding.

"So you've heard," Myles said with a heavy sigh.

Jonathan nodded and poured Myles a glass of his own.

Myles took a large swig and sat down heavily. "I was sure she was going to marry you," he said with a look at Jonathan. "And then I was just getting comfortable with the idea of her being with you," he said to George. "But the Shang Dragon!?" Why didn't anyone warn me that being the father of a young female knight would come with so much anxiety? I thought she would be hitting men with swords, not bedding them!"

Jonathan refilled Myles's now empty glass, and the older knight continued, "I've heard about this Dragon. They say he's unbelievably fast, and huge, and can do things with his body that you can't even fathom."

He was too busy taking another drink to notice Jonathan and George exchange miserable looks at that last remark.

"I know she can take care of herself," Myles pressed on, "but she's only ever been with you two, who care about her. What if this Dragon fellow just wants the Lioness as a trophy notch in his bedpost? I thought having Coram with her would guard against this kind of thing, but apparently, he's completely useless!"

The night continued with more drinking and more dragon-cursing until they eventually all fell asleep at Myles's home.

The next morning, George's splitting headache prompted him to inform the prince that he had changed his mind; he requested to be assassinated immediately. Instead, Jonathan used his gift to ease all of their hangovers. They shared more pleasant conversation over breakfast, and Myles told the two young men that they were welcome in his home whenever they liked.

"I would not have handled that news well if I were alone last night," Jonathan admitted to George as they left. "I'm glad you're back."

"Brethren before wenches!" George said cheerily with a salute.

Jonathan smiled and retorted, "You'd choose her over me in a heartbeat if you had to pick."

"As would you!" George said, and whistled as he started walking away down the road toward the Dove.