When she did that then he would strike her harder. Every now and
then she would become really angry and try to strike at him a few more
times, and he would continue to defend and attack until she would stop and
listen.
Right after lunch he announced they were going on an excursion.
Because of the assassination attempts she was not allowed to go anywhere
without a guard, but it worked perfectly because he was just that. She
looked at him in surprise when he announced it.
"Where are we going?"
"We are going outside to the palace gardens to look at plants," he
said.
There was a surprised look on her face, and she looked like she
might refuse, so he continued before she could.
"As I read the book on plants last night, I realized I know almost
nothing in that area. I figured if I were to tutor you, there was no reason I
shouldn't have an opportunity to learn as well. You can teach me what you
know about them, and I will teach you what I'm reading."
She slowly, cautiously, nodded, so they were on their way. Jacob
knew that Prince Alexander had been the one to start the Royal Gardens, but
he knew better than to mention that after the experience from the day
before. The servants working there looked at the two of them curiously.
Jacob carried his book. He studied a plant in his book and then
studied one on the ground. "I would have to say this is a pea plant," he
announced.
Marie shook her head and smiled. "This is a bean plant."
Jacob thumbed through his book. "I can't find anything in here
about a bean plant."
"You won't. It came from the New World."
"And just how can you tell the difference between a bean plant and a
pea plant?"
Marie pulled something off of it and then walked over to another
part of the garden and pulled something off of another plant. "First, a bean
plant has beans on it, and a pea plant has peas."
Jacob looked at her grinning face and at the amused servants. He
swallowed hard. "Uh, right." He looked at her again, and at the whole
garden. He knew he didn't have hardly a clue what anything was, though he
had read the book half the night. He had big plans to impress her with how
well he had prepared, but now he felt like a fool.
He looked directly into her face and put the book away. "If you
know so much about the plants, why don't you teach me?"
And that was exactly what she did. They walked around the
gardens, and she told him how to plant each plant and how it grew. She
paused on some things, as if trying to remember, and it would frustrate her
when she couldn't. But she remembered most things. He was astonished
that she knew all of this. His family had been soldiers for generations, and
he knew almost nothing about gardens. How could a princess know so
much?
Jacob found himself learning a lot, and the afternoon went by
quickly. Soon they were heading back inside the palace to finish up so
Marie could attend her afternoon tea. Jacob was quiet, thinking about what
had just taken place.
Marie turned to him. "Captain, you are unusually quiet."
"Maybe that's because I feel like such a fool. I read most of that
book last night so I could feel somewhat knowledgeable, and I feel like an
absolute idiot."
Marie smiled. "My father said book learning is important, but some
of the most important knowledge doesn't come from books."
Jacob nodded. "He was very wise."
He realized that she had no sooner said the statement about her
father than the smile disappeared from her face, and she acted as if she were
going to choke. He was concerned. "Princess, are you all right?"
She nodded, but her voice was full of emotion. "I just need to hurry
to tea."
She left him there and hurried down the hall. Jacob hoped if he was
going to continue to tutor the princess that he would learn to understand her
more.
Chapter 19
An Experiment in Kindness and Courtesy
After the first few days getting used to each other, the time raced by.
They would spend a couple of the afternoons in the gardens each week. He
found that some days it seemed to revive her spirits, and some days it made
her listless and unhappy.
He learned how much he liked to eat food right off of the plants. He
had never done it before, and the same food he had eaten for years was
almost totally different when it was fresh. He would be totally enthralled in
the experience of tasting something, only to realize she was watching him
and smiling. She seemed to enjoy his pleasure in it, but it always
embarrassed him.
Because of the multitude of things he found himself learning, he
started hating being called her tutor. Sometimes he thought she was
tutoring him. That was especially true in the gardens. He started referring
to it as "learning together".
They had been learning together for about four weeks, and, as he
watched her practice her defensive moves, he decided it was time to move
to the next level.
"I think you have this down very well, Your Highness."
Marie paused to catch her breath. "I would hope so, after a month of
blocking and dodging. Are we ready to go to swords now?
"Actually, a month is a very short time, and you have learned fast.
And no, we aren't ready to go to swords, yet. The next thing you have to
master is watching your feet. Then we have to start all over and teach you
to strike without your opponent being able to read
your
movements."
Marie groaned. "We'll never get to swords."
"Oh, we'll get there all right, but I don't want you learning any bad
habits. It is harder to break a habit than to learn it right the first time."
Marie seemed reluctant, but resigned to the sensibility of it. Jacob
positioned himself in front of her so she could watch him. "I know I am
going to regret teaching you this, but let's start with your foot movement. In
all the times you've tried, you've only been able to kick me once, and do
you know why?"
Marie smirked. "Because you're lucky?"
"No, because that one time you did something different, and because
I had my guard down to shake hands with you. Can you think of what you
did differently?"
Marie thought a moment and then shook her head. Jacob pointed at
his own feet. "It was in your stance."
"My stance?"
Jacob demonstrated as he talked. "Yes. Usually you are standing
square stance so that, in order to kick me, you first have to move your leg
back before you can move it forward. That extra time it takes is just enough
to allow me to jump out of the road."
Marie told him she didn't understand, so he started over. He had her
stand in a square stance, feet across from each other. Then he had her
slowly bring her foot back naturally, like she did when she tried to kick him.
He nodded as she did it. "What do you see your shoulders doing?"
Marie thought about it, trying it a couple more times, but finally
answered. "As my foot goes back, my shoulders naturally lean forward."
"That's right. That's your body's motion trying to keep you
balanced. Now, do it again and tell me what you see your arms doing?"
Marie tried to move as naturally as possible and watch what her
body was doing. Jacob could see the concentration in her eyes and she
spoke quietly, as if speaking to herself. "My right arm goes back as my
right leg goes back and my left arm is going forward."
"That's right. So I know exactly which foot is going to strike. You
never see a good sword fighter stand in square stance, but he will always
have one foot back. In competition, a man would never use his feet;
however, if you are truly defending yourself, I want you to be able to."
Marie sputtered arrogantly. "Like I will need to."
"Don't discount it," Jacob said.
Jacob then had her change her stance. He had her put one foot back
slightly, her feet still apart. He showed her, and then helped her get her feet
just right, and had her relax by rocking back and forth on them. He nodded
his approval. "That is how a sword fighter stands. And if I ever needed to
kick at my opponent, my leg would already be back in position."
He swung his back foot forward quickly to demonstrate. He did this
a couple of times, and showed her again the difference if he stood the other
way and had to take his leg back first.
He then turned back to her. "Now, you try it." Then he thought
about that a minute and backed away. "You try it
after I'm out of range."
Marie practiced getting into position and then kicking. She was
awkward at first, but soon seemed to do it almost naturally. Jacob smiled
his approval. "Good. Now let's try something else. Set your feet in what
we'll call sword fighter stance." He stood comfortably with his one leg
back, and she did likewise. "Put your weight now on your back foot and
kick with your front. What your body is forced to do naturally is pivot.
This foot is used to trip your opponent, if need be, as long as he is in the
right position."
Jacob showed her by doing quick pivots on his back foot. Marie
tried pivots, as well, but she was slow and awkward. Jacob told her to stand
more on her toes on her back foot. That would give her more speed and
also help her balance. She did, and immediately improved. She was still
practicing this, and Jacob was voicing his approval of her efforts, when
Esmeralda, a servant girl, came in with their mid-morning tea.
"Here's your tea, Your Highness."
Marie kept practicing and didn't even look up from watching her
feet as she answered harshly. "We're busy."
Jacob turned to Esmeralda and smiled. "Thank you, Esmeralda.
And the princess thanks you, too."
Marie looked at him and scowled. "I do not."
Jacob ignored Marie and bowed slightly to Esmeralda. "She truly
does; she just doesn't know it yet."
"I do not!" Marie yelled, kicking at him. Jacob quickly moved and
caught her foot, lifting it waist-high so she was hopping on one leg. He
shook his head. "It doesn't look like you learned anything I just taught
you." He backed her up to a chair, with her hopping all the way. "May I
offer you a chair, Your Highness?"
With that, he shoved her into the chair and dropped her leg. She
instantly leaped to her feet, and Esmeralda left, giggling as she went.
Marie's face flushed with embarrassment and anger. "You... You... I hate
you!"
"Yes, I know." Jacob said quietly, determined to stay calm.
Calmness in the face of an enemy can be more disarming than almost
anything a person can do. He just smiled and pointed at the tea. "Tea?"
Marie acted like she was just about to kick him. He prepared
himself to move or grab her foot. Then she stopped and smiled, disarmingly
and motioned to the tea and nodded. Jacob stepped up to the tea, and she
lashed out with her back foot, catching him hard in the shins.
"Ow!" Jacob dropped down to rub his shin.
Marie smirked as she dropped into a chair. "I'm a fast learner."
She pointed at the tea. "You may pour the tea now."
Jacob stood and poured a cup full of tea. He smiled at her and
started to hand it to her. Just as she was reaching out for it, he poured it in
her lap. Marie flew out of her chair, jumping up and down and yelling at
him, screaming that he had burned her.
Jacob continued to smile calmly. "Not much. You don't have them
bring your tea very hot."
Marie was livid. "How dare you pour tea on me!"
"You didn't say please," he said.
"Please! Why should I say please to a servant?"
"My father taught me that the higher the office you hold, the more
people you are a servant to," Jacob replied. "I may be a servant to the queen
and her court, but you are a servant to your people."
Marie was indignant. "I am not!"
"Oh, yes, you are. Your court may serve your needs, but if you truly
are going to be a princess and a queen, you've got to learn that you are a
servant to your people, and not the other way around."
She stared at him, but he could see in her eyes that she was thinking
hard about this. When she spoke, her voice had a thoughtful quality to it,
even if the anger and arrogance was still there. "So you would have me say
thank you and please to every servant and peasant that does something for
me?"
"Yes," he replied. "And further, it wouldn't hurt to know their
names, too."
Marie glared at him defiantly. "Why should I?"
Jacob motioned to a chair. "If you will sit, we can discuss it over
tea."
She continued to glare at him for a moment, but she finally sat and
dried her pants with a towel. He, then, picked up the tea pot. "Would you
like some tea, Your Highness?"
Her voice was still angry as she spoke. "Yes!"
He paused, holding the tea pot and raising his eyebrows. She got the
message, whether she liked it or not, and finally said it. "Please!"
Jacob poured her a cup of tea and then poured one for himself. He
sat down and took a sip, then looked up at her. "Your Highness has been to
the stables many times, have you not?"
She looked at him suspiciously and narrowed her eyes, as if
wondering what he was getting at, so he continued. "I know you have,
because I have seen you there, and I know you like to ride."
Marie's voice still betrayed her anger. "What has that got to do with
this?"
"Please bear with me," he replied.
"All right, yes I have."
Jacob nodded and continued. "Have you seen the battle stallions
trained?"
"Yes."
"Do we whip them?"
"No."
"Strike them?"
"No."
"Yell at them?"
Marie's voice quivered with impatience and frustration. "No. But
what does this have to do with anything?"
"Let me tell you how we train them. We train them with gentleness
and reward so that they grow to love their trainers and, thus, their human
masters. This kindness engenders that love and loyalty needed in the horses
so that if their master falls off in battle, the horses will risk their lives for
them. If that love and loyalty were not there, the horses would leave their
masters to die in the thick of things."
There was a short pause as they both sipped their tea, and what
Jacob was saying seemed to be sinking in with Marie. He continued. "If
there is anyone who needs the love and loyalty of those who serve her, it is
the queen."
Marie sat quietly, sipping her tea for a long time. When she finally
spoke, her voice was much subdued. "But won't it make me seem less
royal?"
Jacob shook his head. "Not at all. To your servants and your
people, it will make you far more royal than you can ever imagine. To have
your people love you is a noble thing."
Marie spoke slowly and quietly. "I don't know."
Jacob could sense the internal struggle she seemed to be having with
this concept. He smiled at her to assure her. "Then do as my father taught
me. He taught me that if I ever doubted something, to try it as an
experiment. So let's just do an experiment for a week, and you tell me what
you think. If you don't feel it makes life better, I will never bring it up
again. Is it a deal?"
Marie paused for a moment, then answered cautiously. "Maybe."
Jacob spoke encouragingly. "You try to say please and thank you
for everything someone does for you, and you start calling even the house
cleaning maids by their names."
"How would I learn their names?" Marie asked.
"I can help you."
"You know all of their names?" Marie asked.
"Most of them. There is no more beautiful sound to a person's ears
than their own name. The ones you don't know, ask."
"Won't that bother them?"
Jacob shook his head. "No one is offended when you show an
interest in them."
Marie looked away. "I don't know."
Jacob pressed on. "Just one week?"
Marie paused, then slowly nodded. "All right. Just one week."