A/N: I don't own Gilmore Girls or it's characters. . . . . .mmmm, next chapter should be up faster than this one was.
-
Seventeen year old Rory Danes was laying on a large, flat rock next to the pond, sunbathing in the afternoon heat. Well, technically her name was Lorelai Hayden, but she'd gotten out of the habit of thinking of Hayden as her last name six years ago. She stretched, arching her back before curling into a ball and relaxing further. Her nineteen year old cousin Jess sat up from his place next to her and scratched the back of his head, having just woken up. He glanced over at the waterfall and rolled his neck.
Rory yawned, "Where are Lane and Dave?" it was Lane's eighteenth birthday.
Jess shrugged, "Back in town, I guess. He had a surprise for her birthday."
His cousin grinned, "Oh yeah?"
"Mmmhm."
She shielded her eyes from the sun and looked up at him, "What was the surprise?" Jess shrugged, standing and stretching before pulling off his shirt. Rory grinned and got to her feet as well. She bit her lip, lowering her head, but keeping her eyes on him as she grinned.
He simply glanced over at her, "No."
Her jaw dropped before her lips twisted into a pout, "Come on."
"No." he began making his way towards the water and she followed him.
"Jess come on. Please."
"I will not fight you."
She sighed, rolling her eyes, "Just because you know I'll beat you."
He turned to grin at her, "Yes, you would. And I refuse to feel bad about it because you can beat every other guy in town. I suck with a sword anyways."
Rory grabbed the two swords Dave's father had created for them. The master swordmaker had molded weapons for all four of the friends on their sixteenth birthday. She smiled innocently "Jess, if you love me-"
"Ah-" he cut her off, "Don't even start with the guilt." She bit her bottom lip, knowing he would cave. After a moment he rolled his eyes and held out his hand, "Give me mine."
She squealed happily and tossed his to him. He caught it easily and sighed, stepping into stance. Rory mimicked the action and was about to move when they heard someone shriek, "Rory!" as Lane came careening over the hill. Jess lowered his sword and laughed, while Rory sighed and glared at him before turning to the screaming girl.
"Yes, Lane darling?"
"Oh my God!" she screamed, coming to her two friends and ceasing her sprinting, but continuing to jump three feet in the air, "Oh my God, Rory! Oh my God!" Rory's eyes widened as Lane grabbed her arms, continuing her bouncing, "You'll never believe this! He did it! He actually did it! Oh my God! Just now! He did it!" Rory's eyes were the size of saucers as her head bounced to follow the flying girl. Jess's arms were crossed, obviously amused as he watched the two with a knowing smirk.
"What? Who did what? What are you talking about?" she grabbed Lane's forearms and forced the girl to stop jumping, but she continued to bounce on the balls of her feet.
"Dave!" she practically screamed.
"Dave what?" Rory asked, shaking her head.
"He proposed to me! Just now! He proposed!"
Her jaw dropped and her eyes shot open, "Oh my God!" she jumped up, resulting in Lane starting again so both girls were rocketing into the air. "Oh my God, Lane! He proposed! Oh my gosh,
you're getting married!" she shrieked the last part, pulling her friend into a back breaking hug.
Jess was now laughing out loud at the two girl's antics and Lane turned to look at him. She grinned, releasing Rory and barreling into his chest. He grunted as the breath was knocked from him, but enveloped her, "Congratulations."
Lane grinned and started bouncing again before pulling away, "Thanks. But I have to go. My mother is interrogation him." she rolled her eyes, "As if she hasn't known him his whole life." She grinned at the other two, "I just wanted to tell you right away, but now I have to go save my future husband." she started to run off, but Rory called after her.
"Hey! I didn't get any details!"
Lane turned and ran backwards, "Come over later and I'll give you all of them!" she yelled before turning forward and streaking over the hill.
Rory turned back to look at her cousin to see that he was standing casually, watching her with a small smirk. Her jaw dropped and she hit him in the arm. Hard. "Ow." he grabbed it, but was smiling at her.
"You knew!"
"Knew what?" he asked innocently, releasing his arm and standing up straight.
"You knew he was proposing and you didn't tell me!"
"I didn't want to ruin the surprise."
"Jess!"
He was watching her, amused, "Rory! Come on, you know you liked hearing from her more."
She rolled her eyes, "When did he tell you?"
Jess shrugged, walking over to sit on their sunning-rock, "Last week. He was wondering how he should ask her."
"How long has he been planning to ask her?"
Jess laughed, looking out at the pond, "Since we were twelve."
Rory smiled and sat next to him, "So what did he decide on? How did he ask her?"
He looked over at his cousin, "Now wouldn't you much rather hear from her?"
"Jess!"
The raven haired boy grinned and stood up, "You would. I won't ruin it." He walked over to grab his shirt and she followed him.
"But you know impatient I am." she grabbed his arm after he'd pulled on the clothing. "Jess"
she whined, "I'm going to annoy you until you tell me."
"Nah." he grabbed his sword and slid it into its sheath, "We have an entire mile to go. You'll get tired of it." he walked off and she took up her own weapon before jogging after him.
"Jess."
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
"I'll do your chores."
"No." She groaned, but continued making offers until they were over the hill.
-
Rory was laying on one of the middle branches of a large oak tree in the center of town, reading a book she'd stolen from Jess when she heard a commotion below her. She glanced around before sliding from the branch and standing on the one below it to get a better look. It was difficult to make things out through the leaves, but she could've sworn she caught sight of a military uniform. Her heart stopped and she froze, eyes widening. She was always terrified anytime someone from the castle came to town. She swallowed hard and looked closer. Dull red uniforms with three meticulous crosses sewn into the back. The king's royal guards. She inhaled sharply and her heart started beating again, only now it was going double time. She climbed back up to the next branch, praying they wouldn't see her.
-
Jess and Dave were chopping wood out back of the Kim's business. It was a small furniture workshop where Lane's artist father worked his trade. People came from every village in the kingdom to purchase his tables and chairs.
They looked up as Lane's father stuck his head out the back door, "Boys-" the looked up, "-the king's guards are here. They want all men between the ages of sixteen and thirty to go to the town square." The two looked at each other, confused, but curious. They dropped their axes and wiped their brows before making their way from the Kim property towards town square.
-
They'd already started by the time Jess and Dave got to the square. "-and so, you will be put in heats of twelve. Six duels at once. The winners from each round will move onto the next until we have the top three, and then those men will be taken to the castle and put into the new guard"
the knight who was speaking looked around at the two hundred and fifty men gathered around,
"Swords are the only thing being used. We need men who can defend the king and his family on foot. The elite in hand-to-hand combat." He looked around again before speaking, "Get your swords and divide into heats. Mix it up. We don't want the twelve best men in one heat." He walked back to his comrades and turned to watch the men assemble themselves.
Jess leaned in to speak to the man next to him, "What's going on?"
"The king wants to reform his personal guards. They've been the same for twenty years and he's afraid they're tired. He wants the best young men in his kingdom. They're coming to all the villages to take the three strongest fighters from each one."
"Huh." Jess nodded thoughtfully before glancing over at Dave, "Looks like we won't have to worry." His friend laughed before walking towards his home to get his sword.
-
Turned out Jess and Dave were better than they thought. A lot better, actually. Maybe it came from combating with Rory, who was an amazing fighter, even by men's standards. But they'd always thought they weren't very good. They came to realize they were two of the best in the town. Neither were in the top three though, for which they were thankful. Dave wouldn't have been able to marry Lane, seeing as the king didn't like his guards to marry, and Jess just hated the king.
The three men won the final duels and were brought to the front. No one was surprised. It was known that they were three of the best four fighters in the town. The fourth being Rory. One of them was Nicholas Dreeden. His father was the best swordsman in town. In his younger days he'd been part of the queen's royal guard. Now he trained select young men from around the kingdom. When she'd moved to Stars Hollow he'd taken a liking to Rory. He'd seen something in her and had trained her since she was eight. No one was positive whether Nicholas or Rory would win in a duel, and neither had ever been interested in finding out.
The man who had spoken originally stood and once again addressed them. Jess thought that he was the head of the army, but wasn't positive. What was the general's name? Huntzburger? He tuned the man out for several minutes, but his attention was caught when someone in the crowd yelled, "What about the Danes girl?"
Jess's head snapped around to see who'd spoken. It was a short redhead in the front. He could never remember the guy's name. The general looked up, "Excuse me?"
Someone else spoke up, "Leigh Danes. In the whole town, she's best with a sword besides Nicholas." She went by her middle name to the rest of the town.
There were murmurs of approval and several of the guards began to roll their eyes and mock the people who said a woman was good with a sword, but the man speaking held his hand up, "Leigh Danes?" The guards were silent, but looked at him as if her were mad for seriously considering this. "Where is she?"
Jess's eyes widened and he felt himself begin sweating. This couldn't be happening. If the guards saw Rory, if they realized who she really was. . . .they wouldn't hesitate to slit her throat. He looked over at Dave, who's eyes were wide with horror as well. Three years ago Rory had told Dave and Lane who she really was. Neither had believed she was the lost daughter of Christopher Hayden. It was rumored throughout the kingdom that one of the traitorous man's children had escaped the slaughter of her family. Most didn't believe it, though. The family had been easily identifiable by their strong resemblance to one another. How could one of the children possibly have escaped? And after nine years, how could they not have been found? It wasn't until she'd sworn them to secrecy and shown them the crest burned into her thigh that they believed her. Then they'd been sixteen and fifteen, while she'd been fourteen. Old enough to know that even their parents couldn't be told who she really was.
Both knew that if Rory was brought into this ring for a fight, she would beat whoever she was up against. And if she was brought to the castle. . . .Jess's mind trailed off. He couldn't stand the thought.
"She's at the bridge." someone called out.
And before Jess knew what was going on, they'd sent a boy to fetch Rory and she was standing in front of the crowd, looking confused. "Leigh Danes?" the man asked.
She nodded slowly, "Yes sir." The man motioned to one of the three chosen, and the young man stepped forward. A sword was held out to Rory and she looked down at it, unsure, before taking it slowly. "What's this about?"
The man shook his head, "Win this duel and I'll explain." Rory's eyes narrowed, but she was distracted as her opponent lunged at her. She deflected it quickly, and the fight was on.
-
By the end, Rory had defeated two of the three, and she and Nick had been forced into a draw, neither being able to get the upper hand for long. After the duel they'd shared a companionable smile, having finally settled the debate about which was better with a sword. The guards were staring at her, jaws brushing the ground. None of them had ever seen a young woman fight like that. The men from the castle had a quick word before dismissing the crowd. The men of the town dispersed slowly, but Jess and Dave made their way towards their friend. They saw her pale as the general explained the situation.
"But I'm a girl." she said slowly, as if they didn't understand it.
The man laughed lightly, "Yes, I realize that. But you defeated two of the three best men in your town. In a dress, no less. Not many girls can do that." She let out a small squeak, panic written all over her face. She couldn't go to the castle. They would kill her. "Excuse me, everyone was dismissed." her gaze snapped back to him to see that he was looking behind her.
She turned and saw Jess and Dave. She waved her hand, "Oh, this is my cousin."
The man who'd introduced himself as Mitchum Huntzberger glanced over at her before nodding,
"And the other one?"
"He's a friend."
"Your cousin can stay. The friend needs to leave."
Both Jess and Rory began to protest, but Dave quieted them, "No big deal, guys. I need to find Lane anyway." the cousins' shoulders fell and he walked away.
Rory turned back to the man, "I'm not going."
"You don't have a choice."
"Like hell I don't-"
"I have a decree from the king to take the three best swordsmen from each village and bring them to the castle to train for his guard."
Rory shrugged, "Well there you go. I'm a woman."
"You have to come." he was obviously getting impatient. "We're bringing the three men in case the king doesn't want a woman, but I'm following my orders. You're the best. You're coming."
She snorted, ignoring his last comment, "I will not."
"Either you'll come willingly or we'll take you by force-"
Jess stepped between them, "Like hell you will."
Mitchum looked down at him, "This doesn't concern you."
"It does concern me. You won't take her by force."
His eyebrow arched, "I'm sorry young man, but I think in a battle of physical strength, ten men from the king's army would win against you alone."
"My uncle would never let her go. He wouldn't allow it."
"Your uncle is bound by the law to do as the king says. As are each of you." they both opened their mouths to protest, but he cut them off, "Go home. Get your things in order. We'll come tonight to get you." Both began to shout loudly, but were ignored.
Finally Jess grabbed her arm and began steering her back to the house, "Forget it. Luke will never let you go. When they come they'll realize that and leave."
-
And so that's why, late that night, Rory found herself seated in a carriage with three of the men from her town, headed towards the castle. When she and Jess had explained the situation to Luke, he'd exploded. Saying he was going to find Mitchum Huntzburger and. . . . . .well, something he shouldn't have said in front of Rachel and Rory. It had taken nearly and hour for the other three to calm him down and finally he'd settled on the idea to just refuse to let her leave when they came that night. That little resolve had resulted in shouting, cursing, small objects flying through the air as they were thrown at people's heads, and had ended in one of the guards getting a black eye and Luke getting his lip busted. They'd then read the decree and told Luke that if he didn't stop he'd be arrested for attacking a member of the royal court. That, along with Rachel's tears, had been enough to sober him.
She pushed her back harder against the cushion behind her and crossed her legs under her long, hooded cloak. She chewed on her bottom lip, glancing out the window. Her sword was wrapped up and laid across her lap. The three men were talking excitedly, obviously honored and looking forward to being in the king's personal guard. She thought about it for a moment and realized that it was probably like a dream to them. Common peasants and countryfolk given the opportunity of a lifetime. They probably never imagined that they'd be able to move up in society. She sighed and scratched the back of her head, thinking. If she hadn't been fearing for her life and had always been poor, would she be exited about this opportunity? Wouldn't she have jumped at it? Most likely.
But not now. Now, not only was she scared of what would happen if she was found out, but she would have to see the king. Be in the same room as him. Breathe the same air as him. She would, for the first time since their death, come face to face with her family's murderer. He may not have held the sword that delivered the final blow, but if it hadn't been for his lust for revenge, her family would still be here.
She wondered what he looked like. She'd only seen him a few times as a child, and hadn't seen him at all in the past nine years. He'd only been to Stars Hollow three times since she came, and each time she and Jess had made an effort to camp far from town for a week.
And now, for some reason, she was going to see him. It was insane, really. She wasn't even supposed to be a fighter. She was a woman, and only supposed to know how to use a sword to defend herself if necessary. But something about combat had always entranced her. Even as a child she would watch her brother learn and practice, and then beg him to teach her. There was something about knowing that you could protect yourself and the people you cared about. Knowing that you could be independent. Knowing that when it came down to it, you could save yourself. And now look where it had gotten her. It very possibly may have gotten her a ride on the carriage to hell and her death.
The stopped and there was a little shouting and then the sounds of a drawbridge being lowered. The three young men began chattering excitedly and she closed her eyes. God help her, she didn't want to die.
-
Tristan stood in the entrance room of the castle, rolling his neck in a circle. The guards he had now were tired and had been undeniably faithful. They deserved an honorable release. Some had been in the royal family's personal guard for nearly thirty years. It was true that he could have taken men from the army, but he didn't want to take the best men from there. Besides, who's to say that the best men had been discovered yet?
He inhaled deeply, looking forward as the doors opened and young men began pouring into the hall two by two. This was the best of his people? Well, to say the least they looked very capable. He'd always prided of himself on having a strong nation. "Let the games begin." he muttered under his breath. Next to him, his cousin chuckled lightly.
"They look good. Better than I'd expected." Logan said quietly. Tristan nodded, silently agreeing.
His aunt Shira (his father's youngest sister) had married the head of the army, Mitchum Huntzburger, when she was eighteen. From that marriage had come Honor, his older cousin, and Logan. Honor, at twenty three, had two children and lived on a large estate half an hour from the castle. Logan was following in his father's footsteps and stood to become second-in-command of the army on his upcoming twenty first birthday.
He was pulled from his thoughts when his jaw dropped. His eyebrow arch as a young girl came into the room, her face blank. She looked around the elegant hall, her long, full, dark brown hair cascading over her shoulders and down her back, moving as her head slid from side to side. Even from the distance he could see her bright blue eyes take everything in. His eyes traveled down her body and he noticed that she held a sword in her hand, wrapped up in a deep purple cloth.
But he did notice that she seemed completely unimpressed. The rest from the country were looking around, wide eyed and wonderstruck. She almost looked bored. She smirked, leaning back on his heels. She had an attitude. "Mm. I'd like her powdered, put in something provocative, and sent to my room." he said quietly.
Logan laughed, "You'd like that about every woman in the kingdom."
Tristan's smirk widened, "Only the ones that look like that."
"Your highness," Mitchum spoke up, "The champions of your kingdom." he motioned towards the forty-odd or so young men.
Tristan nodded to his advisor and spoke to the men. He basically told them that they were the best and strongest in the country, they were the elite. Their formal training would begin in the morning and he'd take the next week to become personally acquainted with each. But for now it was late and they would need a good bit of rest, because tomorrow wasn't going to be easy. Throughout his ten-minute speech he looked at each of them individually, and as his eyes met theirs, they would look down respectively. All except for the girl.
Her eyes met his and she just stared. He was caught off guard, but knew he didn't show it. His voice never faltered and his stance never changed. He'd never seen eyes like that. Clear blue and cold. Defiant. No one had ever looked at him the way she had. Like she hated him. He almost felt she was looking down on him, but that was insane. He was the king. He shouldn't have felt demeaned by a young girl, but he did. It was almost as if she was looking through him. As if she could take the fact that he felt hollow and make it palpable, as if she really made him disappear.
It took him longer than it should have to break his gaze from hers, but when he did, he dismissed them, and they were sent off with Max Medina to be given their sleeping arrangements. He stared at her back as she exited the room, willing her to turn and look at him again, but she didn't.
-
Rory sat on one of the four beds in the room, glancing around. She was just glad that she and Nick were in the same room. The other two men in the room were from the outskirts of Hartford, the poor side of the town. The man assigning their rooms hadn't looked too keen on the idea of putting a young girl in a room with three men. She didn't see why, though. She'd slept in the same bed as a boy for the past nine years. She had never been and wasn't now uncomfortable around men.
She glanced around the room. There were four cots low to the ground, their training uniforms, and a window. Nothing else but the door their swords, and the clothes on their back. They'd been instructed to bring nothing else, but once training was over they'd be allowed to return to their homes for their things. She stretched out, laying on the cot. Nick stripped down to his undergarments, but the other two men glanced at her uncertainly. She rolled her eyes before closing them sleepily, "You won't offend me by getting comfortable." They glanced over at the boy from her town and saw that he'd already removed his clothes. So, shrugging, they began to remove their own.
-
Tristan sat in the lounge of the king's suite, Logan laying around on one of the couches as they waited for Mitchum to return. As soon as he opened the door, his nephew looked up, eyebrows arched, "A girl?" His uncle sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "A woman? Why in the world would you bring her?"
He shook his head, "Tristan, you don't get it. You didn't see her fight. This girl is amazing. She beat two of the champions from her village. The only one she couldn't defeat is the Carlton Dreeden's son, and he didn't even best her. It was a draw."
Tristan shook his head, "She may be the best fighter in the kingdom. That doesn't mean I'm about to allow a girl into my guard."
Mitchum rolled his eyes, "Don't pretend you would keep her out because she's a woman."
The king sighed, "She'll have to be the best. If any of the men can beat her then they won't respect her."
"I know. Trust me, Tristan. I doubt any of them will be able to. I've seen all of them fight, she and Nicholas Dreeden are the best."
His nephew said nothing, just leaned back in his chair for a while, chewing on the insides of his cheeks, "She looks familiar."
Mitchum nodded, "She does, but you wouldn't know her. Her father is the pub owner in one of the smallest villages of the kingdom. Nothing of notice."
Tristan shook his head, letting it go for the moment, "So then I'm meeting each of the men individually and we're going in alphabetical order." he thought for a moment, "What's her last name?"
"Danes."
"So then will I see her tomorrow?"
His uncle shook his head slowly, "The day after tomorrow."
Tristan smirked leaning back in his seat, "Mmm." She would be fun.