A/N: I'm surprised by the response this has gotten. I thought people would just tell us to leave it alone and keep it a one-shot. Guess I was wrong again.

Pen: Like you always are.

Sword: And like you are, Pen.

Pen: Shut it.

So here we go with the next chapter of this, requested by I'm Not Mad-I'm Alice! Silver, Blaze, Gardon, and all related characters and material belong to Sega.

Chapter 3- Two Knights Are Better Than One

For the next few weeks, Silver and Blaze trained each day with their swords, leaving little time for the story. He could not figure out why Blaze had shown such a sudden interest in swords. Usually when they sparred, she had relied on hand-to-hand combat or using her fire powers. But Silver did not complain at first. He was just happy to spend more time with her and it provided some good training for him too.

Yet as each day passed, Blaze grew more intense. She wanted to put in as many hours as possible and was driving herself well past her limits. Silver saw it and when Blaze ignored his suggestions that she take it easy, he turned to Gardon. The koala was little help. He would just shrug at Silver's pleas and say, "I'll try," but nothing changed.

It all reached a boiling point during the first of the month. Blaze had wanted to fight during the lunch hour and after Silver's shift late at night. Of course, Silver obliged, but he was worried. Silver saw Blaze's exhaustion as they stood squaring with only the moon for light and Gardon as a spectator. Her body drooped, her eyelids kept trying to close, and she was an overall wreck.

"Come on!" she said. When Silver did not initiate the fight, she rushed him instead. Sword held high, she swung, leaving herself wide open. Silver stepped aside and easily tripped her. Blaze caught herself on one hand and stabbed at him. Her attacks were slow, labored, and easy for Silver to deflect. But she continued, never stopping to breathe or look for any opening. She just hammered away at his defenses.

Within a few quick parries, he disarmed Blaze. Her sword flew several feet away and clattered on the ground. Silver held the tip of his own sword to her. "Do you yield?" he asked.

Silver was surprised when he heard Blaze hiss underneath her helmet. The metal amplified it and made her sound like an unearthly creature. Then she pounced, bringing him to the ground and punched his helmet. He held her hands in place with his telekinesis. She retaliated by blasting jets of fire at his head from the palm of her hands. "I will never yield!" she screamed. "I will not be forced-"

"Blaze!" Silver cried, twisting and turning his head to avoid the flames. "Blaze! It's me! Silver!"

She stopped and Silver released her hands. "Silver?" Blaze asked. She sounded unsure. He lay there, watching her, but not daring to push her off. Instead, he removed his own helmet, offering a warm smile.

"It's me," he said again. She reached down to his face. She ran her fingers across his cheek. He winced at her touch. His cheek stung. Blaze must have burned him or left a welt.

"Silver," Blaze said. She removed her own helmet, looking like she did not know where she was or what she was doing. Blaze stared at him, then at her own hands. They started to tremble and Silver grabbed her hands.

"It's okay," he said.

"I…I," Blaze started, but could not finish. She snatched her hands away from Silver and leapt to her feet. In a flash, she ran past Gardon and disappeared into the castle.

"Blaze!" Silver clambered to his feet and tried to give chase. Gardon stood in his way, shaking his head defiantly. "Move! I need to go to her!"

"I don't know if that's the best thing right now," Gardon said. "Seeing you might only make it worse."

"No, I need to let her know she didn't hurt me."

"There's more to it than that." Now Gardon had Silver's attention. He sighed and beckoned that they both sit on the bench. They did so and Gardon stared at his hands for several moments. Finally, he threw them aside. "I suppose you deserve to know. At least before they announce it tomorrow."

"Know what?" Silver did not like where this was going. His stomach was tying itself into all kinds of knots.

"There will be a tournament on Blaze's nameday." He looked Silver in the eye. "All kinds of nobles, princes, kings, or stand-in knights will be entering. They will all be competing for the grand prize."

Silver could barely mouth the words, much less say them. "Which is?"

Gardon turned away as he said, "One thing that they want, no matter what it is, and Princess Blaze's hand in marriage."

Silver felt like he had been punched in the gut. He was sick to his stomach. The bushes around him tilted back and forth like a tumultuous sea. The stars above spun around into an erratic dance and his vision blurred. Somewhere, he heard Gardon calling his name, but he could only think of what he had just said. "Blaze's hand in marriage," Silver repeated.

"Yes! Hey, snap out of it!" Gardon shook him, making the spinning worse. "There is more."

More? Silver did not know if he could handle more. He was on the verge of losing Blaze. What more could be piled on?

"She does not want a marriage like this and is not planning to take it lying down," Gardon said. "Why do you think she had been sparring with you so much? For fun?"

"Wait." It was difficult to piece together what he was saying. Silver was already torn between calming down his stomach and his dizziness. "Blaze is going to enter the tournament?"

"I believe so," Gardon said. "She hasn't outright said it, but if I know the princess, that is exactly what she will do. She wants to choose her husband, not have one chosen for her."

Sounds like Blaze, Silver thought. She had rejected all the suitors thus far, so why cave in and be pressed into marrying one of them? Although he knew it was not possible because of the law pertaining to royal marriage, he had often fantasized about marrying her. The two of them, at sunset, in an open field. They would be-

Silver shook his head. No time for that now, he told himself. There were bigger issues at hand. Like: "What if she fails?" he asked.

Gardon threw up his hands. "All we can do is hope she does not."

That was not good enough for Silver. Blaze had already looked worn out. While she could handle a bow and arrow pretty well thanks to training herself to have pinpoint accuracy with her fireballs, she was still an amateur with a sword. Unless there was hand-to-hand combat, which Silver doubted there would be, Blaze would fail the melee combat.

"I'll enter," Silver said.

"Hah!" Gardon scoffed. "This is no time for jokes."

"I'm not joking," he said. "Two people are better than one. How many events are there?"

"Just three: jousting, sword fighting, and archery."

Silver frowned. He had never been much for jousting. He had always flicked away any opponent that far from him with his telekinesis. It was more of a knight's sport, a "gentleman's" battle between two people with no interference. He was certain Blaze did not have much experience either.

"One would have to win two out of three?" he asked.

"Yes," Gardon said. "But how could that help?"

"Think about it," Silver said. "If I can win the sword fighting competition and Blaze can win archery, then all that's left is jousting. Two chances at that are better than one. We'll figure out the jousting and train at it."

Gardon stared at Silver with an amused fascination. When Silver finally asked what was wrong, the squat koala just shook his head. "Nothing, nothing. You'll really lay your neck out on the line for the princess, won't you?"

"Of course," Silver said emphatically. "I lo-lo-look out for my friends." He shook his head, silently chastising his mouth. "She's the closest friend I have."

Gardon hummed in a thoughtful manner as if he was aware of something more, but he hopped off the bench instead. "You're going to need forged papers and a fake name like Princess Blaze."

"What's hers?"

"Sir Percival."

Silver snorted at that. Sir Percival the knight. He wondered if Blaze had any choice in the name. As Gardon turned to leave, Silver called out to him. "Wait! Please don't tell Blaze about any of this. You know how she will try to do it on her own and stop me from entering."

Gardon smiled over his shoulder. "Tell her what? You were only giving me sword fighting critiques to pass along to her." He walked along. "I will have your papers soon. Good evening."

"Good evening," Silver said. Then he was alone with his thoughts. Although he was ready to lay down his service to help Blaze and fancied the idea of actually winning, there was a looming shadow on his mind. The challengers would reach far and wide. It was no secret that Blaze was beautiful beyond compare; Silver was not the only one who believed that. And the kingdom was prosperous. One could easily bolster their own country by winning the throne of Blaze's kingdom. One could easily exploit it as well.

Not on my watch, Silver told himself.

When he returned to his room in the barracks, he noticed the book lying open on his bed. It was open to the chapter he had left off at earlier where Robin Hood entered the tournament. Silver chuckled and set the book aside before climbing into bed.

This was torture. Blaze was sure of that. The proposition of the tournament was already a knife to the heart, but requiring her presence while it was announced was like twisting the blade in circles. She stood on the balcony overlooking the castle, pretending to smile. One point she had won was refusing to dress up for the announcement. So she stood in typical attire as the herald read the same message that another was shouting in town and others were passing along to every castle, town, and village in all the kingdoms around. That would give everyone about two weeks to decide. Two weeks that Blaze hoped would end in a small turn-out and nobles unprepared for the tournament that she could use to her advantage.

"Hear ye, hear ye!" the pelican shouted to the people down below. He unfurled a large scroll and cleared his throat. "At the end of this month, on our dear Princess Blaze's nameday, a tournament will be held!" The people milling about below were already whispering excitedly to one another. A tournament always provided a lot of fun entertainment and normally, Blaze would be looking forward to it. She enjoyed the competition.

"The winner shall receive a grand prize of whatever he desires and the hand of Princess Blaze in marriage!" There was much more stirring now. Blaze searched the crowd for any sign of Silver, but did not see him. That was strange. She checked again, thinking her eyes were tired and missing him, but again she came up empty. Where was he? It was not like him to miss something important like this.

Once the messenger finished, Blaze scurried away. She searched the castle for Silver, but found no trace of him. She tried the garden next, thinking he might be reading. He was there, yet he was carrying in large straw targets and placing them on the walkway. Already, there were five lined up. On the bench were two quivers of arrows and two bows, along with several swords, axes, and other weapons.

"Silver?" she asked, venturing closer.

The white hedgehog finished moving one target further away, turned, and waved. "Hey, Blaze," he greeted.

"What is all this?"

"It's for training," he said. "You've been so into sword-fighting recently, I thought you might like to practice with this as well."

Blaze watched him position another target. He was hiding something. He knew she was good with a bow. Why would she need to-?

Her eyes narrowed. "Is this what you were up to all morning?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Then I guess you missed the announcement?"

"About the tournament?" He stopped midway in his push. Blaze saw his eyes dilate and she knew she had him.

"Yes. How did you hear about that?" she asked, walking closer. Blaze crossed her arms and waited for his answer.

"S-Someone else who heard the announcement told me," he quickly said, continuing to push.

She had him, but decided to come from another angle to weasel the truth out of him. "So is this everything from the barracks?" she asked, surveying the weapons.

"A pair of each," he said, finishing with the target and walking over to the pile of weapons. "Spears, swords, axes, pikes-"

"No lances?"

"No, there is no room to joust here. We can do that late-" Silver clamped his mouth shut, but it was too late.

"Gardon told you?" she asked. He was the only one that had suspected her. If there was one person whom she could not pull the wool over, it was Gardon. If he had told Silver, then Blaze knew that Silver was going to jump at the opportunity to help her. She would not allow it.

"Yeah," Silver said. "He's worried about you."

"I do not want you to get involved," Blaze said. "This is something I'm doing on my own. Got it?"

"Got it," Silver said. "I just thought you might want to practice. We could use these for now and joust at night when everyone else is asleep. It would not be hard. And you need a sparring partner after all."

Blaze glanced at the targets. Silver had put a lot of time and effort into all this. It would be a shame to let that go to waste. More practice would help. Besides, she would be able to be around Silver even more. She had enjoyed their time together so far and being with him. It had allowed her to forget about the tournament for the briefest, but most precious, of moments and believe it was just Silver and her.

He was smiling that cute, pure-hearted smile that always melted her heart every time. It was a strange juxtaposition as he shouldered a sharp and menacing ax. She sighed and nodded. "All right," she said. "But you are only helping me practice. I do not want you to get involved beyond that. Okay?"

"Okay," he said.

Over the next few weeks, Silver and Blaze practiced non-stop. Silver dedicated every moment of his free time to helping her. She slowly learned how to handle a sword and spear, and Silver improved his accuracy with a bow and arrow.

The jousting proved more difficult, especially trying to practice in the dead of night without waking anyone. Several times during the first couple of nights, they would fall off the horses. Their lances hardly connected at all. Gardon, who eventually picked up on what they were doing, gave pointers to the two.

"I've learned a thing or two from indebted knights in my day," he had said when fixing Silver's posture. "Don't hold it like a spear. More like this." He demonstrated the correct grip. "Don't lean too far. No wonder you two keep falling off."

With Gardon's help, they steadily improved. All in all, Silver felt confident everything would be okay. Yet when he saw their competition, his fear returned, as did his determination to enter the tournament.

One week before the tournament, all the contestants arrived in large droves, bringing servants, bodyguards, soldiers, squires, their belongings, goods, and gifts. Merchants from all over had traveled to the city too, taking advantage of the event to peddle their wares.

Only one king and one prince entered personally. But there were knights by the dozens; some fighting for themselves, others hired by nobles and royalty to bring back victory. Silver recognized some of the names, like Garrett the Swift or Yutan the Survivor. The others were from far-off lands, yet were no less imposing.

Silver remembered two knights in particular. One, hired by a noble, was a stern and silent lizard. He held a respectable air about him such that people graciously moved aside. Or maybe they were that afraid of him. Sir Stewart the Stout, Silver recalled. A fellow announced to be gracious, but deadly in all manner of combat.

Following the knight was his employer, a cat of high status that waved to the people below. Lord Alans, said to be a shrewd diplomat and wealthy beyond measure. He looked like a nice enough person. Still Silver was committed to helping Blaze take down everyone.

The other knight was one that Blaze had rejected before. He was more boisterous, lively, and rotten. He jeered at all the competitors, earning ire from most of them, and catcalled loud enough to try and win over the townspeople watching everyone head to the castle. Several times, the knight broke off from the line just to flirt with girls. Some reciprocated, finding him attractive in some fashion. Wincott the Sharp. Rumors flitted about the crowd how he had cut a man down just because the poor victim had been talking to a woman Wincott wanted to talk to.

Once all the competitors had reached the castle, the fanfare and celebration died down. Blaze stood on the balcony far above and spread her arms to them. "We welcome all of you to our lands. May you all find favor in this tournament." Silver thought that she struggled to say that through gritted teeth. It was hard to tell from ground level.

Wincott stepped forth, not even two minutes after attempting to woo some other girl, and called his squire over. The young lad brought a bouquet to Wincott and he tossed it up to the balcony. "A gift!" he said. "I did my best to find beauty comparable to yours! Alas, I could not find such! I pray these will do!"

Blaze did not pick them up, but grimaced politely at him. "Thank you."

Not to be outdone, Lord Alans brought forth several horses and offered them as a gift. "The fastest in the land!" he declared. "Nothing less for you, Princess." Again, Blaze offered the same courteous smile and thanks. Gardon took the horses to the stable.

After that, the contestants entered the castle, each being led to their rooms. Silver watched Blaze disappear from the balcony, leaving the flowers on the ground. He smiled.

"You," Wincott said, bringing his horse next to Silver. "Servant. Take my things to the castle."

"I'm part of the royal guard," Silver said. His tolerance of the hound's presence had already peaked. "I have other duties."

"Hmph!" Wincott said, snorting. "It looks like the princess needs to discipline her underlings better. Well, I shall take care of that once I win her hand."

Silver ground his teeth together. He stayed silent, knowing that a fight would bring trouble. However, Wincott continued, leaning forward to whisper in Silver's ear. "I shall take care of her too. I'll take care of real good."

All the trouble that fighting a guest, and a knight at that, were slowly being shoved to the back of Silver's mind in favor of breaking all Wincott's teeth. His jaw was sore and he instinctively growled.

"Oh? Mad, are we?" Wincott said, sneering. "Mad that I'm going to have the princess this time while you helplessly watch? Mad that I'll be able to do whatever I want with her, whenever I want? Do things to her that you could only dream of?"

Silver could not stand it anymore. He drew his hand back, his inner palm glowing a brilliant teal color. He built up a burst of energy, aiming it at the center of Wincott's forehead.

"What is going on here?" Gardon asked, bustling in between the two. He looked between Wincott and Silver, who dispersed the energy. Gardon turned and directed the knight to the castle. "If you will, sir knight, please enjoy the comforts of the castle. You must have had a long journey."

Wincott appeared pleased or at least less smug. Silver could not tell. "Yes, it was a long journey. The prize is worth the hassle though."

Gardon called over two servants and had them carry Wincott's belongings into the castle. When the knight was gone, he turned to Silver. "What were you about to do? Blow him away?"

"He was talking about Blaze!" Silver hissed.

"Then help Princess Blaze by saving it for the tournament," Gardon said. "Don't let your love lead you to do something to jeopardize your chance at this."

Silver's eyes grew wide. "How did you know?"

Gardon crossed his arms. "You're not very good at hiding it. I know you're doing this not only because you're her friend, but because you love her. Maybe you even hope you can win the tournament."

"It crossed my mind," Silver admitted. "Please don't tell anyone."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Gardon said, smiling. He led Silver away toward the stables. "In fact, if Blaze doesn't win, then I'm rooting for you."

"Really?"

"Yes." Gardon stopped in front of the stable door. "If there was anyone perfect for the princess, it would be you. I'm sure she would agree."

"Do you think-" Silver trailed off for a moment. "Do you really think she feels that way?"

"You know Princess Blaze. She only talks to you the most. If she has not outright told you, then she has kept it a secret." Gardon walked into the stables and Silver followed. "But, she cannot hide how she watches you, almost longingly. Or how she often talks about you with such adamancy. Or how she always backs out of being around anyone else to be around you. That is either close friendship or the same kind of feelings you harbor for her."

Silver smiled at that bit of information. Already he was calmer from before. "You know, she actually asked me not to get involved."

"What did you say?" Gardon asked.

"I said I wouldn't beyond helping her train." Gardon turned and looked at Silver quizzically. The hedgehog laughed and added, "So I'll just keep helping her train through the tournament."

The koala breathed a sigh of relief. "So have you thought about what you would ask for if you win?" Gardon asked.

What would he ask for? Silver's mind had been so preoccupied with helping Blaze and preparing for the tournament that he had not considered that. If he were to win, what would be the ultimate prize for him? "I don't know," he said. "Having Blaze's hand in marriage would be more than enough for me. But I wouldn't force her into that."

"It wouldn't happen anyway," Gardon said, tending to the new horses. "Remember the marriage law?"

"Right," Silver said, a little sad.

"Even if you won, you're still no noble. It would be forbidden."

I could ask to be a noble, Silver thought. Then I could marry her. But then he thought about what Blaze would want and shook his head. That wouldn't be right. She shouldn't be forced into this. She should be able to choose. "I suppose I would ask to free Blaze from the requirement," Silver said.

Gardon turned from filling up the horse's trough with food. "You sure? After all, you could ask for anything."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Silver said.

Gardon nodded approvingly and finished emptying the bag of food. Then he reached into a pocket of his uniform and produced several scrolls bound together. "Your papers," he said, handing them to Silver. "You are Sir Locksley. I thought it was fitting."

Silver chuckled. "Thank you."

"A word of warning," Gardon said, holding him back. "I'm only helping you because you said you intend to help Blaze. Don't make me regret this. Make sure you remember why you are doing this at all time. The prize is tempting and will need an iron will to resist it. Don't be swayed, lest you end up following Sir Wincott's path and any others like him."

"I won't," Silver said. "I promise."

Gardon watched him for a few seconds and then allowed him to leave. "Alright then. You'll need to register today. Take your armor when you go. I imagine Blaze has already done the same. So there's no need to worry about her catching you."

Silver thanked him once more and left. He dwelled on Gardon's warning as he headed for the castle, but wrote it off as needless fretting on the koala's part. After all, Silver believed he would never force Blaze into marriage. He was trying to free her from such a fate. So he was confident that it would be no trouble refraining from choosing a prize for him.

A/N: And there's the third chapter. Hope you all enjoyed it.

Sword: Ooo, I can't wait for the tournament!

Pen: I can. This fairy tale commoner and princess tale is grating my nerves.

Sword: Oh, c'mon. Get into the romance and wonder of it all!

Pen: No.

Sword: *pulls out a sword* Romance, I say! Now!

If you have any critiques, comments, or criticisms, please let us know if a review. Also, see if you can spot the Easter eggs related to Robin Hood stuff. Thanks for reading.