"It's Squire Alan's night in the chamber. I hope he does alright."
"Of course he will. He's one of the best squires we all know that. Look how he's saved the Prince's at least 3 times; the Ysandir, the Sweating Sickness and we heard from Gary how he saved him during the Drell Valley campaign. We all saw how well he could fight, Dain remember him?"
"And he's nice. He's always polite and nice to us."
"Cressidda, you're just saying those things because you want to become Lady Trebond."
"So what! And because he is all of those things," she said quieter.
"We will go down tomorrow to the chapel and watch him come out," Dafeenie directed. "We better go and get some sleep if we want to get up early to watch." The women all left Dafeenie's rooms to go to their own. They had spent that evening in Dafeenie's rooms talking and eating sweets in celebration of midwinter before they spend the rest of it with their families.
"Has he come out yet?"
"No, and where were you Dafeenie?"
"I over slept and then I got stopped by Lord Honisoit in one of the halls and had to do the polite chit chat thing. And don't take that tone with me Lelinor! Whatever you may be thinking that was not the reason why I was late!"
"Sorry," she mumbled. "Didn't he ask your father for the two of you to be married? He's older than your father isn't he? And you would have been his third wife."
"Don't remind me."
"Your lucky your father wants you to marry for love. You're from one of the richer families, they don't get involved in the politics of it that much if you can help it, so they are in favour of almost everyone, everyone of you are easy to get on with, your all smart, nice people no secret agendas and you are all good looking."
"Thank you, I don't know what else to say to that. You are one of the best people I know, all of you. I couldn't ask for better friends. Oh, look he's coming out."
The three women turned towards the opening chamber door. Squire Alan, no Sir Alan looks very bad, the poor man, thought Cressidda.
The Prince quickly led the man away after a few words.
"Lanna!" he said grabbing her into a hug after they got back to his rooms. She burst out into tears. He sat down on a chair pulling her onto his lap, cradling her.
"Jon it was horrible," she choked.
"Shh, it's alright now, it's over. You'll never have to go through that again. I promise."
"I saw you lying there. You were so white and still and cold. And then there was Roger, he stood over you and smiled and took you're crown. I'll never forget that look, ever!" she shook.
"It'll never happen you hear? I'll never let it." He sat with her for a while. He took her hand and she winced. He looked at them and saw that they were bloody. "I'll be back in a few minutes I'm going to get some things for your hands, ok? You should lie down, you'll be tired." She nodded.
Jon lifted her up and took her to his bedroom. Gentle he put her down on the bed and pulled the covers over her. "Shh," he said smoothing her hair. He got up and put some water on the fire to heat up while he went and got some salve and bandages.
He bandaged her hands and then sat beside her on the bed holding her hand as she dreamed. He tried to soothe her by smoothing her hair, holding her hand and offering what he hoped were comforting words. Her sleep was nightmare filled.
Jon remembered his own ordeal and shivered. None of those memories were pleasant for him. He was thinking about his ordeal when after several tries he heard the knock on the main door in another room. He smoothed her hair again before leaving to get the door.
"How's Alan?" Myles asked coming into the room pushing past Jonathan with Coram, Gary and Raoul following. Jon closed the door after them all.
"Apart from his hands which look really sore, he's fine. He's sleeping."
"He's in his rooms then?" Coram asked. Giving him a look like a man wanting to know where his daughter was and what her boyfriend had to do with it. Jon didn't seem to notice.
"No, he's sleeping in mine," he said trailing off then realising what he said he stumbled a vague excuse using his hands which he doesn't normally do. "Well he couldn't quite remember where he put his keys because well, you see I can't find mine either. The door was locked and we couldn't be bothered getting into it the other way we would of because I take along time doing that and Alan would have been the one to do it but his hands and he was asleep on his feet. So I thought it would be quicker for him to sleep in my room and it would be easier for me to see to his hands. From there because that's where I keep all my bandages and things like that." Jon nodded confidently agreeing with himself thinking that he might have pulled that excuse of.
He looked at Gary and Raoul out of the side of his eyes to avoid the look Coram was giving him. It was the one he'd seen him give Alanna several times, he had his eyebrows raised and his head was drawn back and looking at him with it slightly tilted to it's side, it was a look of disbelief. He chose to ignore it and frowned when he saw that Gary and Raoul were trying to hide their laughter under their hands.
Faithful chose just that moment to come out of Jon's room where Alanna was sleeping and slowly walked over to the door connecting Alanna and Jon's rooms. They all watched him come out of the room curious about what he was going to do. He put out one of his front paws and pressed gently on the door. The door slowly opened slightly. He looked at Jon and gave him a smug look.
You thought you could get away with that crap excuse? You could of at least made sure the door was locked. They all know or have guessed about the two of you. Even you knew that! Faithful told him.
"What did I do to you today?" They all turned to Jon then back again at Faithful because they knew he was going to say something to Jon.
You never gave me a piece of that bacon this morning, he told them all. Gary and Raoul sniggered again.
"I would have just gave him the piece of bacon," Gary remarked.
"I was eating it at the time!" They all laughed at that while Jon glared at the cat.
"Are you going to tell us the real reason? We're all curious now," Myles asked, his amusement showing slightly. "Come on Jonathan, we're all waiting."
"Well, well, I don't need to say anything. I better go check on Alanna." He quickly turned and walked very quickly into his bedroom. Coram, Gary and Raoul all stared at Jon's retreating form at his slip of Alanna. Myles laughed at the look they all had. They were glancing nervously at Myles.
"Will you all stop looking at me like that please? I've known for about 6 years."
"She never said anything about that to us. Even when we asked who knew," Gary grumbled.
"That is because she doesn't know I know. I think she guesses that I know though."
"How did you guess?"
"I heard her speak, the women she would be and I heard Jon speak as well and he didn't sound like a 15 year old boy more like a 30 year old man. So if that was his voice in the future and young 12 year old Alan's voice was that of a women it leaves you thinking." Jon came back then.
"Oh, that doesn't make me feel so stupid about not guessing before I found out," Raoul said.
"How did you find out? Did she tell you?" Raoul and Gary laughed when Myles said this. Jon shot him a warning look.
"We actually found at the same time, and it was like how you found out. Last year about a couple of weeks before the accident."
"You heard her talking?"
"Let's just say you should always lock your doors and knock before you go through one." Gary and Raoul couldn't hold it in any longer and began laughing hysterically. Jon glared at the two of them and they both shut up.
"Are you telling us what we think you are?" Coram demanded shocked.
"No, no, no, we didn't see anything just that you couldn't really mistake them being Alan and the feminine shape," Gary told him.
"If I remember right it was Raoul who pieced it together first. You were pacing saying along the lines of what are you doing and didn't notice that it was a woman." Raoul laughed as Jon pointed out the fact to Gary.
"But how did you find out?"
"We woke her up one morning," Raoul said tactfully.
"But why would Gary be pacing and saying what are you doing?" Gary's face lit up with the intention of telling Myles and Coram exactly how it happened so as to explain why he was pacing and not being able to figure it out. He looked at Jon and smiled sympathetically.
"I was pacing because she wasn't on her own and it didn't look very good. All I saw was two people who I thought off as guys so you can figure out the rest."
"Oh," Myles said lightly. Then more seriously and slightly outraged. "Oh!"
"Oops," was the only response they heard from Gary.
"Jonathan?" Coram asked with that look again. Oh, oh I'm in trouble. The two of them will give me the father talk, Jonathan thought looking around him for an escape route. Damn! There isn't one.
"It's alright for us to go check on her isn't it?" Raoul asked.
"Yeah, should be. Send the cat in first though since the door is open." Raoul and Gary left picking up Faithful who was unwilling to go, instead wanting to hear what they were going to say to Jonathan. Raoul closed the door behind him.
"Of course he will. He's one of the best squires we all know that. Look how he's saved the Prince's at least 3 times; the Ysandir, the Sweating Sickness and we heard from Gary how he saved him during the Drell Valley campaign. We all saw how well he could fight, Dain remember him?"
"And he's nice. He's always polite and nice to us."
"Cressidda, you're just saying those things because you want to become Lady Trebond."
"So what! And because he is all of those things," she said quieter.
"We will go down tomorrow to the chapel and watch him come out," Dafeenie directed. "We better go and get some sleep if we want to get up early to watch." The women all left Dafeenie's rooms to go to their own. They had spent that evening in Dafeenie's rooms talking and eating sweets in celebration of midwinter before they spend the rest of it with their families.
"Has he come out yet?"
"No, and where were you Dafeenie?"
"I over slept and then I got stopped by Lord Honisoit in one of the halls and had to do the polite chit chat thing. And don't take that tone with me Lelinor! Whatever you may be thinking that was not the reason why I was late!"
"Sorry," she mumbled. "Didn't he ask your father for the two of you to be married? He's older than your father isn't he? And you would have been his third wife."
"Don't remind me."
"Your lucky your father wants you to marry for love. You're from one of the richer families, they don't get involved in the politics of it that much if you can help it, so they are in favour of almost everyone, everyone of you are easy to get on with, your all smart, nice people no secret agendas and you are all good looking."
"Thank you, I don't know what else to say to that. You are one of the best people I know, all of you. I couldn't ask for better friends. Oh, look he's coming out."
The three women turned towards the opening chamber door. Squire Alan, no Sir Alan looks very bad, the poor man, thought Cressidda.
The Prince quickly led the man away after a few words.
"Lanna!" he said grabbing her into a hug after they got back to his rooms. She burst out into tears. He sat down on a chair pulling her onto his lap, cradling her.
"Jon it was horrible," she choked.
"Shh, it's alright now, it's over. You'll never have to go through that again. I promise."
"I saw you lying there. You were so white and still and cold. And then there was Roger, he stood over you and smiled and took you're crown. I'll never forget that look, ever!" she shook.
"It'll never happen you hear? I'll never let it." He sat with her for a while. He took her hand and she winced. He looked at them and saw that they were bloody. "I'll be back in a few minutes I'm going to get some things for your hands, ok? You should lie down, you'll be tired." She nodded.
Jon lifted her up and took her to his bedroom. Gentle he put her down on the bed and pulled the covers over her. "Shh," he said smoothing her hair. He got up and put some water on the fire to heat up while he went and got some salve and bandages.
He bandaged her hands and then sat beside her on the bed holding her hand as she dreamed. He tried to soothe her by smoothing her hair, holding her hand and offering what he hoped were comforting words. Her sleep was nightmare filled.
Jon remembered his own ordeal and shivered. None of those memories were pleasant for him. He was thinking about his ordeal when after several tries he heard the knock on the main door in another room. He smoothed her hair again before leaving to get the door.
"How's Alan?" Myles asked coming into the room pushing past Jonathan with Coram, Gary and Raoul following. Jon closed the door after them all.
"Apart from his hands which look really sore, he's fine. He's sleeping."
"He's in his rooms then?" Coram asked. Giving him a look like a man wanting to know where his daughter was and what her boyfriend had to do with it. Jon didn't seem to notice.
"No, he's sleeping in mine," he said trailing off then realising what he said he stumbled a vague excuse using his hands which he doesn't normally do. "Well he couldn't quite remember where he put his keys because well, you see I can't find mine either. The door was locked and we couldn't be bothered getting into it the other way we would of because I take along time doing that and Alan would have been the one to do it but his hands and he was asleep on his feet. So I thought it would be quicker for him to sleep in my room and it would be easier for me to see to his hands. From there because that's where I keep all my bandages and things like that." Jon nodded confidently agreeing with himself thinking that he might have pulled that excuse of.
He looked at Gary and Raoul out of the side of his eyes to avoid the look Coram was giving him. It was the one he'd seen him give Alanna several times, he had his eyebrows raised and his head was drawn back and looking at him with it slightly tilted to it's side, it was a look of disbelief. He chose to ignore it and frowned when he saw that Gary and Raoul were trying to hide their laughter under their hands.
Faithful chose just that moment to come out of Jon's room where Alanna was sleeping and slowly walked over to the door connecting Alanna and Jon's rooms. They all watched him come out of the room curious about what he was going to do. He put out one of his front paws and pressed gently on the door. The door slowly opened slightly. He looked at Jon and gave him a smug look.
You thought you could get away with that crap excuse? You could of at least made sure the door was locked. They all know or have guessed about the two of you. Even you knew that! Faithful told him.
"What did I do to you today?" They all turned to Jon then back again at Faithful because they knew he was going to say something to Jon.
You never gave me a piece of that bacon this morning, he told them all. Gary and Raoul sniggered again.
"I would have just gave him the piece of bacon," Gary remarked.
"I was eating it at the time!" They all laughed at that while Jon glared at the cat.
"Are you going to tell us the real reason? We're all curious now," Myles asked, his amusement showing slightly. "Come on Jonathan, we're all waiting."
"Well, well, I don't need to say anything. I better go check on Alanna." He quickly turned and walked very quickly into his bedroom. Coram, Gary and Raoul all stared at Jon's retreating form at his slip of Alanna. Myles laughed at the look they all had. They were glancing nervously at Myles.
"Will you all stop looking at me like that please? I've known for about 6 years."
"She never said anything about that to us. Even when we asked who knew," Gary grumbled.
"That is because she doesn't know I know. I think she guesses that I know though."
"How did you guess?"
"I heard her speak, the women she would be and I heard Jon speak as well and he didn't sound like a 15 year old boy more like a 30 year old man. So if that was his voice in the future and young 12 year old Alan's voice was that of a women it leaves you thinking." Jon came back then.
"Oh, that doesn't make me feel so stupid about not guessing before I found out," Raoul said.
"How did you find out? Did she tell you?" Raoul and Gary laughed when Myles said this. Jon shot him a warning look.
"We actually found at the same time, and it was like how you found out. Last year about a couple of weeks before the accident."
"You heard her talking?"
"Let's just say you should always lock your doors and knock before you go through one." Gary and Raoul couldn't hold it in any longer and began laughing hysterically. Jon glared at the two of them and they both shut up.
"Are you telling us what we think you are?" Coram demanded shocked.
"No, no, no, we didn't see anything just that you couldn't really mistake them being Alan and the feminine shape," Gary told him.
"If I remember right it was Raoul who pieced it together first. You were pacing saying along the lines of what are you doing and didn't notice that it was a woman." Raoul laughed as Jon pointed out the fact to Gary.
"But how did you find out?"
"We woke her up one morning," Raoul said tactfully.
"But why would Gary be pacing and saying what are you doing?" Gary's face lit up with the intention of telling Myles and Coram exactly how it happened so as to explain why he was pacing and not being able to figure it out. He looked at Jon and smiled sympathetically.
"I was pacing because she wasn't on her own and it didn't look very good. All I saw was two people who I thought off as guys so you can figure out the rest."
"Oh," Myles said lightly. Then more seriously and slightly outraged. "Oh!"
"Oops," was the only response they heard from Gary.
"Jonathan?" Coram asked with that look again. Oh, oh I'm in trouble. The two of them will give me the father talk, Jonathan thought looking around him for an escape route. Damn! There isn't one.
"It's alright for us to go check on her isn't it?" Raoul asked.
"Yeah, should be. Send the cat in first though since the door is open." Raoul and Gary left picking up Faithful who was unwilling to go, instead wanting to hear what they were going to say to Jonathan. Raoul closed the door behind him.