A week passed of Jeb training with Roderick, eventually following him on duty and helping him with basic things

A week passed of Jeb training with Roderick, eventually following him on duty and helping him with basic things. At the end of the week, Cain called Jeb to his office to assign him his own schedule, with his own place to guard and rounds to make. He was assigned the gardens, making rounds around a lake, down to the fountain, through the section where the roses bloomed through most of the afternoon, and into the night.

He'd never paused to notice the roses before, but on his watch, he had a few moments to brush his fingers down their velvet petals before continuing on the rounds. It was peaceful down in the gardens, a place where Jeb could enjoy the silence by himself. He couldn't imagine why it would need guarding, but his father placed him here, and he was glad to have something to do, whatever it was. Better than a desk job.

That night, as soon as his shift was over, he'd decided to go shoot some targets. The lights had already been extinguished on the range, forcing Jeb to first take the time out to walk out, turning enough of them on for him to see the straw man he was supposed to aim that.

Aim. Ready. Fire. Rinse. Repeat.

Several hours were passed in such a way, pumping out tons of metal into the straw until the nearest candle-lit lamp went out. He blew the others out, giving his gun a quick inspection and making a point of cleaning it first thing tomorrow morning. For once, he was tired, and it could wait.

Jeb realized he'd made the mistake of staying out past dark the moment he entered the castle through the only way he knew – the front doors. Inside, many of the lights were already extinguished aside from the candles lighting the view for the stray wanderer. He'd only been here for about a total of two weeks, if that, but then it had been light, he'd always had another man with him, or there had been servants in the halls to ask for directions. Now… Now there was nothing for him to do but try and find his way back to his rooms.

They were on the third floor… or was it the second…?

Well, damn. This was going to be a long night.

--

Azkadellia had gone to bed early with a favorite book and a candle to read it by. Her guard mentioned that staying up late would not do her already-tired self any good, but he couldn't exactly stop her. At night, rounds of guards paced each floor, but no one remained outside her room for more than several seconds. The most they could do was knock, but the risk of waking her was there as well… Sometimes she slept with the candle burning.

Tonight, Az curled up by the headboard, keeping the book of other world faerie tales on her lap and pausing to watch the flame dance in front of her, lost in thought. The story she'd paused on was about a princess finding her prince charming in the most unlikely place, a well, in the form of a frog. This one was her favorite, one that she could remember her father reading to DG and her when they were little, one that helped her fall asleep again after one of her nightmares.

He returned to the story, getting through the few pages ending in 'happy ever after' to find her eyes beginning to close. Placing the book face down, still open, by the candle on the nightstand, Azkadellia curled up on the bed. Hopefully there would be less nightmares, perhaps she would even dream of her own prince, come to rescue her from reality and whisk her off to an imaginary land…

--

Jeb was lost. The several guards he'd come across pointed him this way and that, sending up and down staircases, right and left at corners, around some walls and down a passage he could have sworn didn't exist yesterday. He'd asked the same pair of guards for directions at least twice, by the third time they laughed and shook their heads, believing him to be joking. If he would do anything tonight, he would find his room, or at least someone willing to take him to his room.

Judging by how high he was when he looked out the window, he believed himself to be on the third floor, but then again, he wasn't sure if this was right or not either. His father's office was here, as were his father's rooms, but that would add an unnecessary awkward feeling to his situation.

'Excuse me, dad? Yeah, sorry to wake you up and all… but I was lost. What am I doing up here in the middle of the night? Trying to find my rooms, I'm actually returning from gun practice…' Yes. He could definitely see that turning out very well. He'd be lucky if he ever lived down the embarrassment, as Cain would likely tell DG, and DG would tell the rest of the kingdom.

As he turned around a corner, Jeb paused and frowned into the dimly lit corridor. He could have sworn he'd heard a scream from one of the rooms. No, it couldn't be. The guards would have flocked here in an instant if he'd been right, though it had been faint. Continuing on his way, he thought he'd heard it again, a little bit louder this time, closer.

Someone was definitely screaming.

A natural instinct forced Jeb to lift his gun, pointing into the darkness, and follow the sounds. At last pinpointing the door it was coming from, he knocked. The whimpering and soft noises of protest didn't subside. He knocked again, louder this time, but receiving a reaction no different from the first.

The idea that it may just be a nightmare didn't even hit him until he was already inside the dark room, his eyes adjusting to find a woman, completely alone, tossing and turning on the bed. Moments later, the long, dark hair gave her away as none other than Azkadellia.

Half of him wanted to turn away right here and leave her alone to deal with her dreams, she'd fled from him, after all, but the same instinct that drove him to open the door in the first place made him approach the bed, lowering the gun. Reaching out, he touched a hand to her shoulder, and she let out a strangled whimper. Jeb could hardly imagine what sort of nightmare she was having, he didn't want to know. His own dreams had been plagued with nightmares for a greater part of his teen years, often causing him to lose precious sleep that he got so little of anyway. He'd learned to put up blocks in his mind against emotion in his sleep, which prevented the worst of them. Apparently, she had not.

"Azkadellia, wake up. You're having a nightmare."

A soft, calm voice tore through the dark dream of Zero, Longcoats and mobats, freeing Azkadellia from the hold they had on her subconscious. Her brown eyes opened moments later, taking a few seconds to focus on the man beside her bed.

"Than--" The same sleepy eyes filled with horror as she recognized the man over her, and, more importantly, noticed the flash of the gun's steel. "Why'reyouhere?" She wasn't sure if she truly wanted an answer to that question.

He'd picked up enough from both her tone and the look in her eyes to pick up on the fear. The young woman was practically terrified, making Jeb put the gun back into his holster, and drop his hand, taking a step away from her. At least she didn't yell louder. If she had, the guard might have rushed in to blame Jeb for frightening her.

"You were having a nightmare… I just… came to wake you." He paused for a moment, quickly adding, "I'm sorry," just in case. Was it wrong to wake a princess from her sleep if she was obviously uncomfortable? Jeb didn't know the laws of this place, but back in the resistance camp, this would have been perfectly acceptable.

"Oh…" It didn't register. She knew she'd been having a bad dream, but could not imagine why Jeb Cain would be walking down her hallway to hear her in the middle of the night. On top of that, looking sweaty, disheveled and holding a gun. "Just go ahead and do it, then."

"Do… what…?"

"What you're here for."

"But… You're already awake," he pointed out, taking another half a step back. Was she often delusional at night as well? DG might have forgotten to mention that bit about her sister, though turning around now and leaving without another word seemed hopelessly rude.

"You came to kill me though, didn't you?" She was almost hopeful. Almost. Azkadellia didn't want to die, of course, but she blamed herself for every life she'd ruined during her reign under the control of the Sorceress, and Jeb had been one of those victims. He had all right to be angry, all right to want to kill her, and she would be powerless to stop him if he tried now.

Of course, she could kill him with a snap of her fingers, but that was a sorceress thing to do. Azkadellia did not want to touch any part of her magic, good or evil.

"N-no. Why would I?" That would explain the fear. "I was a bit lost… and heard you scream, so I came to see what was wrong. I was just waking you up..."

"You could kill me. After everything I've—she'd done to you." She would have understood.

"I wouldn't. It wasn't you, it was the witch. I understand that. I… I believe that." At least his father believed it therefore Jeb would as well. "I'm not going to hurt you."

She blinked up at him for a couple seconds in the dark, pulling the blankets tighter around her slender figure. He could pinpoint the disbelief fighting with the want to accept this explanation and end the fear, and part of him understood.

"I'll go now…"

"Wait." She held out a hand, then replaced at her side. "Thank you."

One of the patrolling guards chose that moment to walk past the still-open door and take a glance inside, automatically marching into the room.

"You. What are you doing in the elder princess' bedchambers in the middle of the night?"

Jeb cursed mentally, turning to face the larger man, but before he could speak a word, Azkadellia interrupted.

"I was having a nightmare, Crandall. It's all right. He just woke me up, and was leaving now." She still sounded terrified out of her mind, and while the guard looked dubiously in Jeb's direction, he accepted that explanation.

"It isn't proper for a random man to be in your bedchambers in the middle of the night--"

"My reputation barely exists as it is. Just show him back to his rooms." Azkadellia turned away, wrapping the covers around herself. She probably would not fall asleep again tonight, but it would be worth a try.

"C'mon then, who are you anyway?"

"Uh. Jeb, Jeb Cain. I'm a bit new to the castle…"