He was sure the queen would not approve of Marie going up to that
dangerous area. But as he learned from her that the Market was in mid-summer and would be past her birthday and her Princess Ball, he realized
his assignment with her would be finished anyway. He realized that if she
did go, she would most likely not be escorted by him, but by some young
nobleman who would end up being her husband. Jacob knew that if he was
invited to go along, it would only be as part of the Royal Guard.
For some reason these thoughts tore at his heart. He struggled with
them, and he didn't know why. He knew that was the way it would be, yet
he found himself wishing he could be there as her friend and not as just a
soldier guard. He had found his emotions doing funny things as he had
thought of another man being her escort. No matter how hard he fought to
push it from his mind, the feelings in his heart lingered.
They had watched her plants starting to grow and blossom, and as
they did, he also watched her do the same. He knew that under those rough
pageboy clothes truly was a princess, and it was more evident all of the time
as her manners and goodness became much more apparent.
His thoughts were brought back to the present as Marie came
bouncing into the room full of exuberance and announced her arrival. "I'm
ready!"
Jacob smiled at her. This was to be the day they tested her skill.
She was dressed in protective clothing for a sword fight competition. She
wore the vests, gloves, and all the other protective gear, and she carried her
sword in one hand and her helmet under the other arm. Jacob had asked
John to come and test a "possible new recruit", feeling it would be a good
chance to evaluate her skill. Next to himself, John was the best sword
fighter in the Guard.
He didn't divulge to John that he was competing against the
princess, not wanting him to hold back. As he and Marie had made plans
for this challenge, he had been afraid word would leak out. Marie was so
excited he was sure she would accidentally tell someone, but as the morning
approached, it seemed their secret was safe. He gave her some last minute
instructions and, when they could hear someone approaching, she quickly
put her helmet on, concealing her identity.
He whispered to her. "Are you ready?"
"I was born ready! And after months of practice, I'm dying for a
chance to thrash somebody."
"Remember, don't let him hear your voice," Jacob said.
John strode into the room, full of confidence. "Is this the possible
new recruit, Sir?"
"Yes, John. Put on your mask and touch swords."
John put on his mask, and the two brought their swords to the front
and touched the tips. Jacob smiled and winked at Marie. "All right, may
the best, uh, person win."
To John's surprise, Marie attacked quickly and drove him back. A
new recruit seldom had the confidence to go immediately on the offensive,
but usually stuck to defense. Jacob found himself smiling. Marie was no
wimp. Even he was surprised at her fast attack.
John soon recovered his composure and turned from defense to
offense, pushing her back. Her aggressive nature and desire for offense
made her slightly careless, and John tapped her multiple times with the edge
of his blade, effectively scoring points against her. This seemed to ignite a
fire in her, and she moved quickly, scoring a few points of her own.
Again, John seemed surprised that a new recruit could be so
effective. Jacob was satisfied with her vigorous use of the skills he had
taught her, but disapproved of her irresponsible aggressiveness that left
openings for John to score points. He knew she was letting her emotions
rule too much of her assault.
John's experience began to show as he stayed calm through her
barrage, and then gradually started driving her back. He drove her to the
wall, and just at the point Jacob felt the match should be called in John's
favor, Marie lashed out with her back foot, catching John in the shin. John
dropped his guard, and Marie swept his sword from his hand.
John knelt down to rub his leg. "That was not a very fair and
gentlemanly thing to do."
Jacob found himself grinning at John's distress. "You weren't
fighting a man." Then he turned and motioned to Marie to remove her
mask. "Princess?"
John stood and bowed, embarrassed. "Your Highness, I didn't
know."
Jacob patted him on the shoulder. "Nor did we want you to. We
didn't want you to hold back."
Marie had a silly grin on her face. "I guess I am doing quite well on
my training, considering I won."
Jacob frowned at her. "Your win is questionable. Except for the
kick to the shins, John was in the lead. And that can be a good lesson to
you, John, to never trust your opponent."
John nodded. "Yes, sir."
Marie scowled. "I could have won anyway."
Jacob shook his head. "You are learning fast, but you are sloppy,
and you are trying to read his head movement too much. Your foot work,
excepting your ability to kick someone in the shins, is clumsy. You've still
have much to learn."
Jacob recognized the all-too-familiar fire in Marie's eyes. She
raised her sword. "I think I could take you."
Jacob sighed. "Your Highness this is not..."
"If you're so all fired smart, defend yourself," she said.
Jacob looked at John, who was grinning profusely. He looked back
at Marie. "All right. Put on your mask."
Marie glared at him. "Only if you do."
"I don't need..."
She waved her sword menacingly. "I want to be able to hit you and
teach you a lesson."
Jacob rolled his eyes, but bowed. "As you wish, Your Highness."
John, who had an uncontrollable smirk on his face, handed Jacob the
vest and the helmet. Jacob frowned, but put them on.
He turned to face Marie. They touched swords. Immediately she
attacked. He was ready for her and swivelled his wrist in an arc, sending
her sword skidding across the floor.
She picked it up and breathed deeply, as if to control her emotions.
Jacob could imagine the glare behind her mask as she said, "Try that again."
She lunged at him again, though more cautiously than before. He
blocked her sword and slapped her hard with the back of his. He knew it
had to sting, but she didn't make a sound except for a grunt. Again and
again she would attack, only to have him block her sword and slap her with
the back of his. He started backing her to the wall. She lashed out with her
foot, but he moved quickly, and she stumbled. The stumble was enough for
her to loosen her grip on her sword, and he again sent it skidding across the
floor.
She never went after it, but stood, and he knew the challenge was
over. He removed his helmet, and she did likewise. She seemed
embarrassed and looked down. He smiled at her. "You have nothing to be
ashamed of, Your Highness. You have learned faster and better than
anyone I have trained, and in a much shorter time. We'll just keep
working."
She lifted her eyes to meet his smile and returned it with one of her
own. Jacob then turned to John, who had a repressed grin on his face, and
handed the gear back to him. "That will be all, Lieutenant."
John took the gear, saluted, and turned to leave. Jacob called after
him. "And, Lieutenant, none of this is to leave this room. Understood?"
"Absolutely, Sir."
He grinned again, saluted one more time, and headed out the door.
Jacob's eyes turned from John to Marie. Her rugged clothes and demeanor
made him think of her Princess Ball and the need to have her ready. She
seemed to sense his concern.
She looked at him questioningly. "Captain, you are worried."
He tried to smile at her, but it was eating at him. "Your ability to
defend yourself this well in this short of time is commendable. There is still
more to learn, but it is commendable. And you have been true to your word
in at least attempting to study philosophy and appreciate the arts. But it is
what I haven't taught you that worries me."
"What is that?" she asked.
Jacob paused. He had not wanted to bring up the subject, but he
knew he had to. "Your Princess Ball is just over a month away, and I still
haven't taught you the most important requirement for that night."
"Which is?"
"To dance," he answered.
Something told him it wasn't her reaction that he was most afraid of,
but something in his own heart. He wasn't sure what it was or why his
spirit trembled at the thought of dancing with her. It was a strange feeling -
almost an excited, yet frightening feeling. He figured he knew what her
reaction would be, and though somewhat correct, she wasn't as adamant
against it as he had expected.
She just rolled her eyes. "Here we go again. I'm supposed to learn
to dance."
Jacob nodded. "Yes."
"Dancing is so ridiculous. What is the purpose of it?"
Jacob found himself flustered and without words. He had never
thought of it before. He had known he enjoyed it, but what
was
the
purpose? His brain reeled, and his voice sounded slightly hoarse as he
spoke, still groping for words. "The purpose? It is such a magnificent
feeling to be swirling around the room together."
Marie sounded unconvinced. "Why?"
Jacob struggled bravely to put his thoughts together. "Why? Why,
because you are moving in unison, very much united, like one, not two.
God said that a man and a woman should be as one. It has only been while
dancing that I have understood that in some small way. If you've never felt
that exquisite feeling, it is almost impossible to describe."
He had no sooner said it than he thought it sounded really stupid.
But to his surprise, Marie held her arms out to him and said, "You've
convinced me. Show me."
He was so surprised by this that he didn't even move until she
impatiently raised her eyebrows. He finally nodded. "All right."
He tried to show her the actions as he explained them. "First, the
man comes up to the woman and he bows. She, in turn, curtsies
graciously."
He approached her and bowed. She frowned. "Curtsying is the
most ridiculous tradition."
Jacob sighed heavily. "Humor me. Besides, curtsying is a woman's
way of saying yes without speaking." She nodded, so he started over. "He
bows," he said, bowing to her, "and she curtsies."
She curtsied, and he thought it did look ridiculous to have someone
dressed as a boy doing a curtsy, but he didn't say so, choosing instead to
continue. He smiled and held out his hand. "The man then puts out his
hand to her, and she accepts by placing hers in his."
She looked at him sideways as he continued to hold out his hand,
and cautiously she placed her hand in his. He smiled and continued. "The
man then leads the woman gracefully out to the dance floor."
They walked together out onto the middle of the open space. He
thought that Marie was anything but graceful. Perhaps it partially had to do
with her clothes. The flow of a dress, in many ways, seems to add to the
elegance of a woman. The grace of a woman and the grace of a man are
very different things. He tried to concentrate. When they reached the
middle of the floor he pulled her to face him. "Now, the first..."
She interrupted him defiantly. "You don't need to tell me. I have
been taught how to dance. I have just never wanted to, so I have done what
I needed to do to avoid it."
Jacob nodded graciously. "All right. Let's try."
He hummed a song for them, and they started to dance - stiffly at
first. It was obvious that Marie had had training, but she seemed to be
lacking in confidence and practice. Soon, however, they were gliding
uncomfortably around the floor. At least, Jacob was uncomfortable; Marie
seemed to be enjoying it. He tried to tell himself the discomfort he felt was
due to the way she was dressed, and, indeed, that was a lot of it, but that
nagging feeling that kept its constant grip on his heart was stronger than
ever. It made him so ill at ease that he stopped.
Marie looked right into his eyes. "What is it? Why did you stop?"
Jacob was at a loss to totally explain, so, before he had even thought,
he said the part he did understand. "I'm sorry, Your Highness. I have never
danced with a woman that was not wearing a dress."
He had no sooner said it than the look on her face made him wish he
had not been so brash. He could see her swallow hard and try to act as if
nothing was wrong, though her eyes told a different story. She faked a
smile. "That bothers you?"
Jacob again found himself without words, and, again, he found
himself speaking without thinking. "I feel like I am dancing with one of my
men."
Even though he didn't mean for it to come out quite the way it had,
her angry reaction surprised him.
"How dare you infer I am a man!"
"I'm sorry, Your Highness."
Jacob found himself trying to calm her and couldn't figure out how
to do so. In an instant, her whole demeanor changed from one of anger to
one Jacob had never seen in her before. He could see tears in her eyes and
hear them in her voice.
"You really feel like you are dancing with a man?" she asked.
Jacob had never seen Marie cry before, and he was unsure how to
handle this. He also knew he was not about to try to answer that question
directly and hoped to change things back. He bowed. "I'm sorry, Your
Highness. I will continue."
He put his arms out to her, but she pulled away, and her voice
trembled with emotion. "I don't feel like it any more."