A/N: Okay, I know I should be writing my sequel, but I was re-reading Lioness Rampant yesterday when this story suddenly came to me.

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Tamora Pierce (Except Jakob, but she can take him if she likes). Even the idea. I'm just extending it.

Alanna's Hair: A Short Story

There was a knock on the large oak door or Myles of Olau's home. Sir Alanna of Trebond and Olau, more commonly known as The Lioness, rose to answer it. However, when she entered the front hall she saw that one of her adoptive father's many servants had beat her to it.

A man stood in the entrance way. His hair was long and dark and was tied back into a horsetail at the nape of his neck. He had pale skin a full dark eyebrows over ice blue eyes. All in all he was very attractive, but something about him made Alanna nervous. He wore a black cap and carried a black bag full of... well the lady knight wasn't quite sure what was in the bag.

"May I help you?" she asked politely. The man seemed to see her for the first time, though she'd been standing there since the servant had opened the door. His eyes widened as he saw her and his jaw dropped slightly. Alanna restrained herself from laughing at his reaction. She couldn't say she was surprised. Everyone that saw her that didn't know her personally did the same thing. She was beginning to adjust to the pointing fingers and hushed whispers. Even so, the peoples reactions to seeing her were always amusing.

"Y-yes, M'lady," stuttered the man. Alanna forced herself to keep a straight face. It seemed that she made the man nervous. "I-I was told that Mistress Eleni Cooper was residing here. She made an appointment with me."

"An appointment?" Alanna asked. Eleni hadn't said anything about an appointment to her, not that it was any of Alanna's business.

"Yes, M'lady." The man was regaining is composure, Alanna noticed. That was good. It was impossible to hold a conversation when one was unable to understand what half the participants were saying.

"Pardon me for being rude, but who are you?"

"Jakob Shears, M'lady," he replied politely, not at all offended. Alanna's face remained blank. "Mistress Cooper hired me to do her hair for a party she's to attend tonight," he explained.

"Oh!" Alanna said, suddenly understanding what was going on. She'd completely forgotten all about the party her father and Eleni were supposed to go to that night. Alanna had been invited, but had declined politely. She was never fond of parties and she had the distinct feeling that as Champion she'd be going to quite a few in the near future.

"I'm sorry, Eleni isn't here at the moment. She went out shopping with her niece some hours ago, but she should be back soon." The man nodded nervously and Alanna smiled at him. "Come in and sit down. You can leave the bag by the door."

Jakob complied and set his belongings down in a corner. He then followed the lady knight into a comfortable looking sitting room. He sat down gently on one of the large, overstuffed chairs while she went off to get two glasses and a pitcher of lemonade.

Jakob looked around the room while the Lioness was out. It was quite cozy. There was a large, slightly over fluffed couch that had been well used. It was in between two matching, high backed and well cushioned armchairs. Across from that was a fireplace, unlit in the summer heat. Over the mantle was a large seascape painting done by a young Volney Rain. There were two large bay windows, both with their curtains drawn open. The walls were lined with shelves of books, and in a corner was a table with a tea pot on it, and four chairs.

The hairdresser turned as the door behind him opened. He had expected to see the Lioness, however, the Gods seemed to like Jakob's reaction to the famous lady knight so much that they felt he was in need of another surprise. There in the doorway was the future King of Tortall.

"Oh," the King (Prince?) said. "I'm sorry, I was told everyone was gone for the afternoon."

"Y-y-your M-m-majesty!" Jakob said with surprise. The King smiled and tried to contain his mirth as the man stood up and bowed shakily.

It was at that moment that Alanna chose to re-enter her father's library.

"Jonathan, what are you doing to the poor man? Look, he's white as a sheet!" She turned to the hairdresser and handed him a cold glass of lemonade. He downed it in one gulp in an attempt to calm his nerves.. "Sit down and ignore him," she said flapping her hand over at the King. Jakob's eyes widened. Ignore the king?

"I'm sorry, M'lady," the man said kindly, "but I can no more ignore him than I can ignore you!"

"Ignore me? Why would you have trouble doing that?"

"You'll have to forgive her," the king interjected. "She tends to forget that she's famous."

Alanna sighed with annoyance. "Jonathan what are you doing here?"

"Thayet," he said, as if that one word explained everything.

"She's shopping,"' the lady knight told him. "Don't you have a meeting or something to go to?"

"Oh no!" Jon said with a laugh. "This is much more entertaining." The king picked up the empty glass that was sitting on the table and poured himself a glass of lemonade. Taking a sip from it he asked, "Why are you home? Don't you have things to do?" He reached a hand up and pulled at one of Alanna's curls.

She slapped his hand away. "Why are you prying?"

"I'm not prying. I'm curious."

"Ahem," came a deep voice from the doorway.

Shock was beginning to become very common for Jakob Shears. He could almost hear the Gods laughing at him. Two men, two very large men, entered the room. Sir Gareth of Naxen, son of Duke Gareth of Naxen, and Sir Raoul of Goldenlake, the new commander of the King's Own.

"Private party?" asked the Duke's son.

Raoul saw the stranger sitting stiffly on Myles's favorite chair. "No, apparently not."

Alanna groaned. "What do you want?"

"Is that anyway to treat your friends?" asked Gary, his voice mock hurt. He tugged Alanna's hair over her eyes. She growled and swiped at him.

"Careful, Gary," Raould joked. "She might bite you and then you'd lose a hand."

The three men laughed at this. "We came to see Myles, but he's not here. So we're waiting," Gary said sitting on the edge of the table.

Alanna sighed and threw herself gracelessly into the empty armchair. Slinging her legs over one of the arms she told her friends, "He might not be back for a while."

"Like Gary said," Raoul grinned, "We're waiting."

"There you are!" cried a feminine voice. Jakob turned around in hopes that this was Eleni. Luckily, it was Eleni. Eleni and her niece, Rispah. "Jakob! I've been looking everywhere for you," she said to the young man. "How are you, dear?"

"Fine, Mistress Cooper," he said, feeling more comfortable now that there was someone he knew in the room. Two some ones, even though he did not know Rispah as much as he would have liked. "And you?"

"Wonderful!" she replied with a smile. "Now, lets go get this done!"

She turned to Alanna and her companions as the two of them left the room. "Oh, hello boys. I didn't see you there." Jakob blinked and Alanna chuckled. "Gary, please get off the table."

"Yeah, Gary," Alanna said childishly. "Get off the table!" Gary countered her teasing by tugging at another curl and watching it spring back up. Alanna growled.

Soon after Eleni and Jakob had left the room, the four knights were joined by Thayet and Buri. Both of them carried full bags. With a short 'Hello' to Alanna's friends, Buri sat down on the couch and put her feet up. "It's so hot outside," she complained.

"Oh, stop it, Buri," Thayet said, pulling a box out of one of her bags. She tossed it to Alanna who turned the box over in her hands. It was the Copper Isles Red Griffon tea that she had asked for. Alanna grinned at her friend.

"I'd make some," she said, "but it's so hot outside I don't think we want it."

Thayet nodded. "I don't understand it. How can you stand wearing your hair down in this weather?"

"It wouldn't make much of a difference if I wore it up. Those children over there would keep pulling it out."

Gary took the hint and tugged at her curls again. "Gary," Alanna moaned. "Would you stop?"

"No," he answered shortly, "It's too much fun." Alanna chose to ignore him, hoping that he would eventually tire of it. However, he continued to play with the curls, watching their colors change as he pulled on them and they bounced up and down. Rispah hid a grin when she saw that the look on Gary's face was the same look that young children got when opening their Midwinter gifts.

It was at that moment, with Gary tugging at her curls and then twisting them around his fingers, that George, Coram, and Liam decided to enter the room.

Coram raised a brow. "Is there somthin' about ye two that I don't know?" he drawled.

Alanna sat straight up and yelped as Gary pulled at her hair. "Ow! Gary let go!"

"I can't," he said sheepishly. "I'm stuck. Or rather, my ring is stuck."

"So take the ring off!" she wailed.

"It won't come off," he insisted.

"That's because Gary has fat hands," Raoul said, coming forward and trying to help Gary untangle his fingers. Gary glared at Raoul and turned red. Alanna's other friends just stood there and laughed.

"OW!" she cried out. "Raoul, that's not helping!"

"I'm sorry!" he said, "but I can't think of any other way to do this."

"Look," Jon said coming forward. "It's not that hard. Just rip it."

"Like this?" Gary asked. He made his hand as flat as he could, spreading his fingers wide, and tugged. Hard.

Alanna shrieked as she felt her hair get ripped from her scalp, but Gary's hand was free. "That hurt!" she screamed at him, clutching the back of her head.

"I'm sorry," he told her kindly. He reached forward to lift her hand and see what damage he had done.

"DON'T touch me!" she yelled at him. Her friend jumped away from her and put his hands up towards his face.

"Alright, but don't hurt me!" he cried. Suddenly he began to laugh.

"Oh, that's it isn't it. This is all just a big joke to you!" she yelled at him. Gary only laughed harder. Now, everyone in the room was laughing. Everyone, except for Alanna. She let out a frustrated yell and then stomped from the room.

After a few moments they had all managed to calm themselves. Coram looked over towards the door worriedly. "What d'ye think she's goin' t' do?"

"Somthin' rash, no doubt," George answered.

~*~

Alanna walked down the hall feeling much better about herself. That scene in Myles's library a few hours ago had done horrible things to her pride. So she'd run to Eleni, who was the only one that had not been present for the embarrassing event.

"It was awful," Alanna explained to her. "And it hurt too," she said rubbing the back of her head.

"Oh, poor thing," Eleni said sympathetically as Jakob worked on her hair.

"What should I do about it?"

"You're asking me?"

Alanna nodded. "You've been giving me womanly advice since I was twelve. You have an answer to almost everything."

Eleni laughed at this and then suggested that Alanna tie her hair back.

"I've tried that. There's just too much of it," she said. Suddenly her violet eyes lit up, and a sly grin spread over her face.

Eleni protested, but in the end she could not make Alanna change her mind.

The Lioness turned into her father's library, only to see that everyone was still present, and Myles had joined them. Alanna sighed from the doorway and glared at the very prominent backs of Jon, Gary, and Raoul. "Don't you three have a meeting or something?"

All heads turned and there was a collective gasp from the group. Then there was silence.

Myles sighed, "Oh, Alanna."

"What did you do?" demanded Thayet, as if it weren't obvious.

"How could you?" Gary cried out.

"Your hair. It's all just, gone." Jonathan said. It was true. Her lovely copper locks that had fallen past her shoulders only a few hours ago were now cut to her earlobes. He was impressed, he hadn't thought Alanna would do that. Put a frog or a snake or some other squishy amphibian in their beds, perhaps. But this? This was unanticipated.

"I like it," Buri said with a smile. George nodded, his eyes sparkling.

"Kitten, why?" asked Liam, even though he knew perfectly well what the answer that question was.

"I couldn't keep it out of my eyes," she explained.

Raoul smiled. "Or Gary's fingers," he added

"Shut up," Gary snapped at his friend. His face colored as Alanna began to laugh. "Shut up, or I'll force you to shave yours off, Raoul."