Fic: Princesses Don't Practice
Nov. 26th, 2011 06:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meridian_roseTitle: Princesses Don't Practice
Fandom: Original Fic
Characters/'Verse: Kat
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1586
Prompt: For the 30 days of fiction meme prompt #19 in the marketplace and the![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
100_tales prompt #055 Kindness
Summary: Sometimes one moment of kindness is enough to restore your faith in humanity.
Warnings: None
The marketplace was overcrowded, full of traders and people buying things, and those just hoping to catch a glimpse of Gloriana Katerina. There'd been some shouts of 'Bitch Queen' and the like on the outskirts of the market and Honor had nudged his horse closer to hers.
One man actually spat at her, and Tara turned her horse, bent down, and smacked him across the face. Worse penalties could have been issued for such an offence and he knew it, though he shouted some obscenities at Tara before pushing his way off through the crowd.
Many people were still happy to see her. A father lifted his child so the girl could give Kat a daisy-chain and she took it with a smile, despite the fact her head was starting to hurt. Too much noise, too much sun, not enough sleep. This tour was killing her.
Then a boy pulled Vince's tail and he whinnied, flicking his tail and prancing forwards. Kat calmed him quickly and turned in the saddle to glare at the sullen child. His mother pulled him close and gave Kat a look of disgust. She was fortunate Vince hadn't kicked the child to death – he'd defended her with his hooves and his teeth before now. This would never happen in the outer regions, Kat thought. In farming communities children were taught that animals needed to be treated with respect and if you went around yanking their tails it was your own damn fault if you got bitten or kicked – not to mention that you could kill a rider by upsetting a horse enough that it unseated them.
Something about the larger settlements however seemed to rob many people not only of their common sense but, she was increasingly aware, their basic decency. The more people there were, the less sense of community they had. For instance, no one had ever frozen to death in the tiny village her mother had grown up in, but at least twenty people had died of the cold last winter in the great walled city Kat called home.
Kat had thrown open the dungeons when she'd heard that. Without the doors locked, they were just rooms that were warm and dry, with straw to sleep on, and she made sure the homeless and infirm who lodged there during the worst of the snows got the same food that prisoners received when detained there.
"What justice is there when a criminal receives care while innocents starve?" she'd railed and the Council hadn't dared to question her. She railed at them more frequently these days, and she was certain they were pleased she was on the tour, out of sight and mind for the time being.
The smaller settlements reminded her of all the time she'd spent with her grandparents, and a way of living that was more in touch with the seasons and less concerned with the endless politics of the Citadel. The larger towns and cities ranged from varying shades of innovative and welcoming, through to poverty stricken and hostile.
"I need to stop," Kat said abruptly, momentarily overcome, and reined in Vince. There was a horse trough nearby and she wondered how badly she would be breaching protocol by dousing herself in the cool water. She climbed down, her legs unsteady.
"My lady?" Honor asked, sliding from his horse. He had to push his way through the crowd which swarmed around them. Kat took one stumbling step and was jolted by someone slamming into her shoulder.
"Back up," a woman shouted. "Give the lady some air."
Kat felt someone grab her sleeve and pull her to a shady spot beneath the awning of a fruit stall. Seated in one corner, a young boy looked up at her, smiled, and went back to his finger painting. Tara and Ryan joined them, hands on their sword hilts, in an attempt to keep the onlookers at bay.
"Let me get you some water," the woman said, releasing Kat. "You look terrible – begging your pardon."
"Yes," Kat agreed, both to the water and the fact she probably looked dreadful.
"Sit down," the woman insisted, pushing a stool towards her. "Ely, pass me the water jug."
Ely reached underneath the stall and brought out a jug, handing it to his mother, who'd picked up a mug from somewhere. Honor finally wandered over to them, having handed the horses over to another of their retinue.
"Are you all right?" he asked, staring suspiciously at the stallholder.
"I'm fine," Kat said, grateful to be seated. "Just dizzy from the heat."
"You should have told me. I'd have made us stop at an inn until the afternoon," Honor said.
Kat took the mug and swallowed the cool water gratefully. She looked up at the woman – blonde hair turning darker with age, kind brown eyes. "Thank you. I didn't catch your name."
She saw Honor raise his eyes skyward in annoyance. It wasn't something she did on purpose, no matter what he seemed to think. It was just sometimes she got distracted and forgot about certain details like names or courtesy titles.
"I didn't give it yet. Apologies, your Ladyship," the woman said. "I'm Magda. This is my son, Ely. Are you enjoying your visit?"
"Somewhat," Kat said, with her trademark honesty that so infuriated the Council. "My temper is much improved by your kindness, Magda."
Magda beamed at the compliment. "Thank you, your Highness. Is that right? Highness?" Her face fell. "I'm never sure of the right title."
"Neither am I," Kat said and giggled. Madga gave her a look of concern, probably because royalty wasn't supposed to get hysterical. Which showed how much the common people knew about royals. "Honor, where's Vince?"
"Sky is with the others. The guards will make sure he's all right," Honor said soothingly.
"His name is Invincible Sky," Kat said suddenly to Magda. "I don't know why. Who can battle the sky to test if it really is unconquerable? It seems a rather silly name." She scrunched up her nose at Ely, who smiled back at her. "I call him Vince and he -" she gestured with her head at Honor, "calls him Sky."
"Why?" Ely asked.
"That's a long story," Kat said. She passed the empty mug to Magda.
"Are you building ann-an-armie?" Ely asked, stumbling over the words. Kat tried them out in her head.
"An army?" she asked. "Yes."
"Mother says I'm too young to be in ann-armie," Ely confided. Magda's smile was fixed in the way of a parent praying their child didn't say anything incriminating or rude. Rude was enough to get you executed in some noble's books. Magda couldn’t know that Kat was so relieved to have found a decent family amongst the ill-mannered crowds she'd faced in this part of the country that she was more likely to give Magda a title than a punishment, whatever came out of the boy's mouth.
Of course she'd gotten in trouble last time she'd handed out a title on a whim - as much trouble as the Council could muster against their monarch, anyway.
"Yes, you are," Kat said. "But you'll grow, soon enough."
"Maybe when I grow up then?"
"Maybe. Maybe there won't be a need for an army when you grow up," Kat said. Maybe there wouldn't be a need for an army at all. Wishful thinking. Stop it. Focus.
Ely took this in his stride and looked at his picture. "It's your horse," he said. Kat smiled at the paint smudges.
"It's very good."
"Not really," Ely said. "But Mother says I'll get better the more I practice."
"That's good advice," Kat said, ignoring Honor as he shot her a look of disbelief at this hypocrisy. 'Princesses don't practice', she told him whenever she got tired of shooting arrows or playing Catch-and-Grab.
The crowd had gathered around the stall, despite the presence of three guards, for Cal had joined Tara and Ryan, while Honor was casually toying with his dagger. Magada cheerfully asking if people wanted to buy things was keeping the front of the stall a bit clearer however.
"We should go," Kat said. She pointed to the stacks of fruit. "Those peaches look delicious," she said.
"Take as many as you like," Magda said immediately.
Kat waved one hand. "No, I can only eat one. Though Honor might like one. And perhaps some apples for the horses and my retinue?"
Madga put a dozen apples in a basket and added three peaches atop it. She insisted it was a gift, but Honor just as firmly insisted on paying handsomely.
"Put up a sign," Kat advised before they left. "Purveyor to Gloriana Katerina. It might garner you some more sales."
"I will, your Highness," Madga said gratefully. "Thank you."
Honor kept one arm around her to shield her from the press of people as they made their way to the horses, all of whom had been drinking from the trough.
Well her headache was fading, Kat thought, biting into one of the peaches. And her faith in humanity had been restored once again. Vince nickered when she approached and she rubbed his nose affectionately.
"At least you didn't make her a duchess," Honor said, feeding Black Thunder an apple and stroking his mane.
"It was only once," Kat said. "I don't hand out titles to every person who's nice to me."
Although, she thought, the world would be a much better place if that was how nobility came to be.
Fandom: Original Fic
Characters/'Verse: Kat
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1586
Prompt: For the 30 days of fiction meme prompt #19 in the marketplace and the
100_tales prompt #055 KindnessSummary: Sometimes one moment of kindness is enough to restore your faith in humanity.
Warnings: None
The marketplace was overcrowded, full of traders and people buying things, and those just hoping to catch a glimpse of Gloriana Katerina. There'd been some shouts of 'Bitch Queen' and the like on the outskirts of the market and Honor had nudged his horse closer to hers.
One man actually spat at her, and Tara turned her horse, bent down, and smacked him across the face. Worse penalties could have been issued for such an offence and he knew it, though he shouted some obscenities at Tara before pushing his way off through the crowd.
Many people were still happy to see her. A father lifted his child so the girl could give Kat a daisy-chain and she took it with a smile, despite the fact her head was starting to hurt. Too much noise, too much sun, not enough sleep. This tour was killing her.
Then a boy pulled Vince's tail and he whinnied, flicking his tail and prancing forwards. Kat calmed him quickly and turned in the saddle to glare at the sullen child. His mother pulled him close and gave Kat a look of disgust. She was fortunate Vince hadn't kicked the child to death – he'd defended her with his hooves and his teeth before now. This would never happen in the outer regions, Kat thought. In farming communities children were taught that animals needed to be treated with respect and if you went around yanking their tails it was your own damn fault if you got bitten or kicked – not to mention that you could kill a rider by upsetting a horse enough that it unseated them.
Something about the larger settlements however seemed to rob many people not only of their common sense but, she was increasingly aware, their basic decency. The more people there were, the less sense of community they had. For instance, no one had ever frozen to death in the tiny village her mother had grown up in, but at least twenty people had died of the cold last winter in the great walled city Kat called home.
Kat had thrown open the dungeons when she'd heard that. Without the doors locked, they were just rooms that were warm and dry, with straw to sleep on, and she made sure the homeless and infirm who lodged there during the worst of the snows got the same food that prisoners received when detained there.
"What justice is there when a criminal receives care while innocents starve?" she'd railed and the Council hadn't dared to question her. She railed at them more frequently these days, and she was certain they were pleased she was on the tour, out of sight and mind for the time being.
The smaller settlements reminded her of all the time she'd spent with her grandparents, and a way of living that was more in touch with the seasons and less concerned with the endless politics of the Citadel. The larger towns and cities ranged from varying shades of innovative and welcoming, through to poverty stricken and hostile.
"I need to stop," Kat said abruptly, momentarily overcome, and reined in Vince. There was a horse trough nearby and she wondered how badly she would be breaching protocol by dousing herself in the cool water. She climbed down, her legs unsteady.
"My lady?" Honor asked, sliding from his horse. He had to push his way through the crowd which swarmed around them. Kat took one stumbling step and was jolted by someone slamming into her shoulder.
"Back up," a woman shouted. "Give the lady some air."
Kat felt someone grab her sleeve and pull her to a shady spot beneath the awning of a fruit stall. Seated in one corner, a young boy looked up at her, smiled, and went back to his finger painting. Tara and Ryan joined them, hands on their sword hilts, in an attempt to keep the onlookers at bay.
"Let me get you some water," the woman said, releasing Kat. "You look terrible – begging your pardon."
"Yes," Kat agreed, both to the water and the fact she probably looked dreadful.
"Sit down," the woman insisted, pushing a stool towards her. "Ely, pass me the water jug."
Ely reached underneath the stall and brought out a jug, handing it to his mother, who'd picked up a mug from somewhere. Honor finally wandered over to them, having handed the horses over to another of their retinue.
"Are you all right?" he asked, staring suspiciously at the stallholder.
"I'm fine," Kat said, grateful to be seated. "Just dizzy from the heat."
"You should have told me. I'd have made us stop at an inn until the afternoon," Honor said.
Kat took the mug and swallowed the cool water gratefully. She looked up at the woman – blonde hair turning darker with age, kind brown eyes. "Thank you. I didn't catch your name."
She saw Honor raise his eyes skyward in annoyance. It wasn't something she did on purpose, no matter what he seemed to think. It was just sometimes she got distracted and forgot about certain details like names or courtesy titles.
"I didn't give it yet. Apologies, your Ladyship," the woman said. "I'm Magda. This is my son, Ely. Are you enjoying your visit?"
"Somewhat," Kat said, with her trademark honesty that so infuriated the Council. "My temper is much improved by your kindness, Magda."
Magda beamed at the compliment. "Thank you, your Highness. Is that right? Highness?" Her face fell. "I'm never sure of the right title."
"Neither am I," Kat said and giggled. Madga gave her a look of concern, probably because royalty wasn't supposed to get hysterical. Which showed how much the common people knew about royals. "Honor, where's Vince?"
"Sky is with the others. The guards will make sure he's all right," Honor said soothingly.
"His name is Invincible Sky," Kat said suddenly to Magda. "I don't know why. Who can battle the sky to test if it really is unconquerable? It seems a rather silly name." She scrunched up her nose at Ely, who smiled back at her. "I call him Vince and he -" she gestured with her head at Honor, "calls him Sky."
"Why?" Ely asked.
"That's a long story," Kat said. She passed the empty mug to Magda.
"Are you building ann-an-armie?" Ely asked, stumbling over the words. Kat tried them out in her head.
"An army?" she asked. "Yes."
"Mother says I'm too young to be in ann-armie," Ely confided. Magda's smile was fixed in the way of a parent praying their child didn't say anything incriminating or rude. Rude was enough to get you executed in some noble's books. Magda couldn’t know that Kat was so relieved to have found a decent family amongst the ill-mannered crowds she'd faced in this part of the country that she was more likely to give Magda a title than a punishment, whatever came out of the boy's mouth.
Of course she'd gotten in trouble last time she'd handed out a title on a whim - as much trouble as the Council could muster against their monarch, anyway.
"Yes, you are," Kat said. "But you'll grow, soon enough."
"Maybe when I grow up then?"
"Maybe. Maybe there won't be a need for an army when you grow up," Kat said. Maybe there wouldn't be a need for an army at all. Wishful thinking. Stop it. Focus.
Ely took this in his stride and looked at his picture. "It's your horse," he said. Kat smiled at the paint smudges.
"It's very good."
"Not really," Ely said. "But Mother says I'll get better the more I practice."
"That's good advice," Kat said, ignoring Honor as he shot her a look of disbelief at this hypocrisy. 'Princesses don't practice', she told him whenever she got tired of shooting arrows or playing Catch-and-Grab.
The crowd had gathered around the stall, despite the presence of three guards, for Cal had joined Tara and Ryan, while Honor was casually toying with his dagger. Magada cheerfully asking if people wanted to buy things was keeping the front of the stall a bit clearer however.
"We should go," Kat said. She pointed to the stacks of fruit. "Those peaches look delicious," she said.
"Take as many as you like," Magda said immediately.
Kat waved one hand. "No, I can only eat one. Though Honor might like one. And perhaps some apples for the horses and my retinue?"
Madga put a dozen apples in a basket and added three peaches atop it. She insisted it was a gift, but Honor just as firmly insisted on paying handsomely.
"Put up a sign," Kat advised before they left. "Purveyor to Gloriana Katerina. It might garner you some more sales."
"I will, your Highness," Madga said gratefully. "Thank you."
Honor kept one arm around her to shield her from the press of people as they made their way to the horses, all of whom had been drinking from the trough.
Well her headache was fading, Kat thought, biting into one of the peaches. And her faith in humanity had been restored once again. Vince nickered when she approached and she rubbed his nose affectionately.
"At least you didn't make her a duchess," Honor said, feeding Black Thunder an apple and stroking his mane.
"It was only once," Kat said. "I don't hand out titles to every person who's nice to me."
Although, she thought, the world would be a much better place if that was how nobility came to be.
