A/n- Sorry about the long wait between updates. The Holidays… you know how it goes.
Disclaimer: Nope.
Your Partner
A trilling laugh wafted over the chattering noise within the hall.
Jane's spoon clinked upon her bowl. This had been going on since they had sat down for the feast.
The tables that had bordered the edges of the room had been brought forth once the King's party had swelled to its desired guest attendance. In the center of the room Caradoc and Gwendolyn sat at their table, the Prince seated along side his father, but the Princess absent from her seat.
Jane frowned. When she and her friends had seated themselves along one of the adjacent benches, she had tried to search for the girl. It worried her that her spot was now vacant.
That laugh again.
Interrupted, Jane sent a murderous stare off down the table to her right.
Unaware of the redhead's fuming, the bubbly blonde practically draping herself over Gunther Breech's arm continued her incessant flirtations, obviously compelled by the boy's rich parentage- what else?
Jane had been watching their interaction for a while, more occupied with viewing them than her food, to be honest.
It was hard to tell if Gunther was actually enjoying the attention. He kept smiling politely at her and then staring hard at the table in front of him, brow creasing, before being drawn out again by the blonde patting his arm or hitting his shoulder.
Perhaps this was the girl Gunther had brought flower for last year? Jane wondered to herself, disgusted with the blonde's batting eyelashes and the way she touched him. It was as if she were trying to mould herself onto the side of him.
On Gunther's left his father sat. The man was banging his hand on the table about something or other. At the sudden noise Jane saw Gunther tense, possibly flinch. Only… maybe it was the girl's fault, because she suddenly became rather icy.
She shook his arm, mouthing words with rounded syllables, and he finally glared at her. The girl withered, scooting back to her own personal space.
Vindication!
Jane beamed.
But when Gunther swivelled to tell the blonde off, he caught another set of eyes.
Jane froze, heat instantly blooming in her face. His eyes widened, locked with hers. A strange feeling, like missing a step going down the castle stairs, dropped from Jane's stomach and sizzled out into her fingertips. In her haste and embarrassment, she attempted to busy herself with her plate, only to successfully upend her cup, spilling the contents across her food. She looked at Gunther again, slowly, dreading his laughing at her mistake.
But he wasn't watching her any longer. He had gone back to staring at nothing in particular, a pained look on his face. The blonde next to him tried once more to shake him from his reverie, but he didn't take notice, and she dropped her hand.
"Jane?"
She looked up to see Jester staring at her soggy plate.
"Um, sorry. I…"
"Are you feeling alright, Jane?"
"Ah-"
"Well, you have hardly eaten anything."
"I was not very hungry."
"Odd," Jester laughed, "Jane not hungry?"
Jane smiled, but only half-heartedly. Against the wall she saw the King and Queen rise from their seats. "Well, I think dinner is over with anyway."
As the royal pair moved towards the front of the room, to take their seats upon their vaulted chairs, the rest of the occupants in the hall also began to stand, the servants quickly clearing and moving the tables back from whence they came.
The now large, empty center of the room was rimmed in people waiting in rapt anticipating for the beginning of the night's revelry. Jane too, began to inch forward.
"Exciting, is it not?" Pepper was gazing at the Queen. "She looks stunning tonight! I can not wait for the dance… oh…"
As they watched, a squat woman appeared out of the side doors behind the elevated throne dais, hurrying towards the monarchs. The woman, a nanny who would help Jane's mother with the royal children, bowed swiftly before taking the Queen aside. As they spoke, a general murmur rose from the other occupants in the hall. The chattering burst out even louder as the Queen spoke quickly to her husband before turning to leave with the maid.
"What do you think is wrong?" Jane asked Smithy, who could see over the heads of the other guests.
"I do not know. It cannot be too bad…"
"Come on, let us go and see." Despite Jester trying to pull her back, Jane slipped in between the crowd and began inching her way toward the inside of the mass of people, "Sorry!" she apologised, as toes were trod on and elbows were mistakenly jabbed into sides. As she reached the front, her left foot came down rather hard on the figures' now standing next to her.
"Watch where you are going, will you?"
"Gunther!" Jane hissed as she straightened up, nearly bumping her head on a tall man's elbow.
"Jane?" The boy seemed to shrink away from her as she looked at him, daring him with her eyes to make some silly comment about her outfit, but nothing came. Gunther's shoulders were hunched, his jaw was set, and he was looking away from her.
Heat flooded Jane's face.
His voice, although she could barely hear it, was as soft as ash, "And here I thought you had no stomach for this kind of thing."
Thing. He meant the ball.
Jane grit her teeth, swallowing her retort as the King raised his hands for silence.
"I am sorry, friends," Caradoc began from his seat, "It seems as if our little Princess has fallen ill…. Nothing too serious, mind you," he added hurriedly. "The Princess Lavinia has just requested her mother's special attention, so I am afraid the Queen has had to retire for the evening."
That's why she wasn't at dinner, Jane thought. I hope she's alright.
"Now I know it is customary for Queen Gwendolyn and I to begin the night's festivities, but I am sure this year tradition can be put aside somewhat for the Princess."
The hall was silent; only soft whisperings could be heard.
Jane felt, despite herself, a little dejected. The Queen was a beautiful dancer.
But a heartbeat later-
"Oh, my good King!"
Beside her, Jane heard Gunther give a somewhat loud groan.
From the back of the room Magnus Breech had raised his voice over those beside him. "I see no reason for us to break our longstanding tradition over a simple sickness!"
The King looked for a moment as if he were about to object, but hesitated. "What do you… suggest Merchant?"
"Why, let another pair dance! I am sure the young guests are excited to show off a little of their own… ahhem… inextinguishable energy."
Caradoc was stroking is chin. "That is a remarkable idea…"
"Might I make a suggestion?" Magnus didn't even wait for an answer. "Why not let my son, Squire Gunther, begin the dance with a partner, hmm?"
Jane could have sworn she heard Gunther cease to breathe, and beside Gunther's father, the blonde girl was looking extremely pleased with herself.
"Excellent idea!" The King exclaimed.
"Oh God," the boy breathed, looking pale.
Jane grinned. All Magnus was trying to do was to show Gunther off to the crowd, like a prized pig. Serves him right. Serves him right for all his nastiness. "Ha. Ha." She snipped.
Gunther glanced at her, eyes wide.
Caradoc was searching the crowd with his eyes, murmuring.
"At least your little friend will be finally getting the attention she has been hounding after."
"What?!" Gunther hissed at the redhead, face heated.
Magnus was creating a wide berth as he walked through the crowd towards them.
"Your silly little escort!" Jane was, for some reason, feeling absolutely murderous. "You seem to be hurting her feelings, ignoring her like that at dinner."
His face was horrified. "You never understand, do you?"
"Me!?"
"Jane!" The King's voice.
She suddenly realized that her last outburst had been rather loud. A coldness washed over her as she turned to see Caradoc now standing upon the dais and Magnus just steps from them. The broad man was stunned into silence, staring at her with large eyes; the blonde girl was tearing at the hem of her sleeves.
Jane quivered. "Your Majesty?"
The King was beaming broadly at them. "Splendid idea! The two Squires!"
"What… no! I mean…" Out of the corner of her eye, Jane could see her mother and father, who were watching with expressions of excitement and immense pride.
Knight's code! Don't forget- and your' parents. Oh no. Just… just get it over with! Knights' Code!
"Of, course, sir." She said quickly, bowing.
As she straightened up, Magnus strode forward and grabbed his son by the shoulder, pulling him away. At the same time Pepper was tugging at her hand as Caradoc was striding over to the minstrels.
"Jane!"
"I know, I know!" She whispered hurriedly to her friend, "But my honor as a Knight is on the line! I cannot back out now, even if this is a complete and utter mistake. Now the King's counting on me to take his and the Queen's place! Pepper!"
The other girl patted her hand lightly, "Just thank heaven it will be over quickly."
Jane turned around as her name was called. She saw Gunther, off to the side, his arm in the vice like grip of his father. The man was mouthing words to his son, and Gunther was shrinking back from him, but no one seemed to take notice. Jane felt a pang of… something, and she was reminded about the unsettled feeling she had at dinner.
As she slowly walked up to the front of the room, the guests who wished to dance formed two neat little rows facing each other, men on the left and women on the right.
Jane took her place at the front, the position closest to the King; the man looked particularly pleased with himself.
Magnus had released his son, and Gunther walked over opposite her.
She tried to catch his eye, to get a better bearing on what was going on, but he was staring at the ground, as if he were fighting to keep his gaze there. The momentary flare of disdain toward him vanished, as if it had never been there at all.
The noise around them died, replaced with an energy that hung in the air. It was tangible. The room was alive with excited with anticipation.
Jane was quivering.
She knew this dance, she knew it, having learned so long ago… but with Gunther as a dance partner… it felt as if she was being thrown off into very unfamiliar space.
She could feel the eyes of everyone, her parents, her friends, the knights, the other ladies, the King, all staring. Searing.
Jane took a deep, shaking breath, trying to steady herself.
She looked at her partner.
His eyes were down, head bent. Slowly Gunther straightened to meet her gaze. He bowed, as he should, and she let one foot slide, curtsying, head dipping.
A single rebec began.
She took a step forward towards him, and he towards her.
Her right arm bent up and out, palm vertical, his motion the mirror image. His hand met hers and they created a gesture as if the meeting digits were praying. Both moved in a full circle and stepped back to the side from which they had begun.
Still for one heartbeat.
The buckles on Gunther's shirt caught the light like little silver diamonds.
The rest of the string instruments joined.
Now both the lines moved as one.
Stepping forward, dancers took both of their partner's' hands, rotating in a circle and then stepping back to the line. There Jane circled around the woman to her left and Gunther the knight to his right; the pair were facing one another once again yet farther down the row.
Another pause.
One step forward. They halted for the briefest moment, side by side, before taking another stride to switch positions.
Again, a step forward, and then another, so they were alongside each other facing the same direction. Gunther raised his arm, palm facing the ceiling and Jane laid her hand on top of his. A step forward, and then one back.
The line turned the opposite direction.
One forward, one back.
They broke away, separating again into two facing rows, and began again from the beginning.
Jane had never imagined Gunther could be graceful, certainly not after his horrible footwork last year. Yet, here he was, stepping round her, surprisingly gentle as he caught her hands.
She was transfixed by the way he held her gaze, breaking only when they passed one another, or when someone else moved in front of them.
His hand cooled hers when they touched, and when his skin brushed over her fingertips, Jane felt a prickling sensation that travelled down her arm to rest somewhere in the base of her stomach.
The two lines stepped forward for the last move of the dance, the men with both upturned palms met the women's down turned ones and as they touched, the last note of the music vibrating in the air.
Gunther was looking very intensely into Jane's eyes. She could feel heat start to creep up her neck. His right hand began to cup her palm, holding it.
The men bowed once more as the women dipped to curtsy.
Very briefly, their gaze broke.
The music stopped, and all the females began clapping. The spell ended Jane slipped her left hand out of his, meaning to turn away without a word. His hold on her other palm was tight.
"Gun-"
The boy closed his eyes and brought her bare hand up, kissing it. The touch was brief, but the pressure was more than she expected. He dropped her hand, quickly, his curling into a clenched fist.
Jane was speechless.
"Jane!" A voice called to her. It was Pepper.
Before Gunther could say a word, Jane turned on her heel and nearly ran out of the dance crowd, leaving the boy standing there, staring after her. She didn't look at the expression on his face; she didn't want to.
A/n- The dance reference is taken from Pride and Prejudice, when Darcy and Elizabeth dance for the first time- some of the steps are the same. That song was also what I had in mind.
Thank you to TheLightningFlash for the amazing beta work!!!
Last chapter soon!
Please review!