Concordia discors

Title: The Dreams of Angels
Chapter: Three
Author: Warr1or
Pairing: PrincessB/Jab. Sammich forever!
Dedication: For all my fellow sammiches: may the purity of PB/J illuminate your lives as it has my own.

The next day PrincessB rose from her midday prayers in the castle's rose-scented chapel, and made her way to the courtyard where she knew she would find her cousin Pierce. Yesterday at their humble evening meal he had most kindly reassured her that their bulging stockpile of goods had grown to meet Jab's requirements. When she had pressed him to tell her to what manly task they would next turn their energies, he had been unable to resist her innocent enthusiasm. Too, her willing acceptance of the plain fare on which he and Jab had dined had impressed upon Pierce on obvious truth: PrincessB had allied herself with them, and fancied herself part of a trio. It could never be, of course. She was a delicate girl-child, not a warrior. By every standard, she was unequal to Pierce and Jab. They were stronger and more skilled and, although she was the princess royal of the de St. Aubyns, Pierce was conscious that Jab possessed--and that he himself had begun to acquire--a nobility of soul that, refined by trial and struggle, would be worth more than mere lineage could ever supply.

Still, PrincessB was a loyal supporter, and she was doing her best to fall in line with Jab's requirements. And, Pierce well knew, she prayed for them, sweetly and diligently, without ceasing. She deserved to accompany them, as long as in so doing she was not placed in harm's way either physically or morally. So Pierce had suggested that she might, if she so wished, witness their early afternoon training session.

She had never, PrincessB quickly realized, seen anything like this before. Few if any maidens had. Pierce and Jab, stripped of superfluous clothes and glistening with sweat, were engaged in fierce exercise--all part, the princess realized, of their training. Her heart beat faster at the sight of their exertions, and she trembled with sympathetic excitement.

For what felt like an eternity, the courtyard was silent except for the rough panting of the two men, their occasional grunts of effort, and the princess' own gasps of excitement. They wrestled near-silently, muscles throbbing, hands gripping and sliding along slick, sweat-soaked flesh. PrincessB clasped her own hands together so tightly her knuckles were white, and felt weak with innocent girlish enthusiasm.

And then the sacred near silence of the two godlike men was rudely and abruptly broken by a chorus of frivolous laughter and silly jokes as a group of finely dressed young noblemen burst into the courtyard. PrincessB shrank shyly into the shadows. She recognized these men. They were the peers of her cousin Pierce, the wealthy heirs of half a dozen noble houses, and had stayed at the castle before this. She had always found them both annoying and intimidating. Their jokes were shallow and inane, and their boisterous behavior and overindulgent lifestyle were worthless at best, and dangerous at worst. Now, however, she found that even the sight of their costly garments and the sound of their upperclass accents repelled her. She had, unknowingly, learned to so admire the worthy Jab that anything different from his honest speech and homespun clothes was, in her eyes, less. I bet this is how Pierce feels, she thought.

But whatever Pierce felt within his heart and soul, his actions now fell short. Jab had only just pinned him to the ground, holding him firmly in place for one long lingering moment to prove his victory. Pierce had wriggled and writhed in vain, unable to free himself. Now he opened his eyes in horror at the voices of his friends, and blushed crimson at being discovered in such a position.

Jab, expressionless, watched his face carefully and understood. However disappointed he might have been at Pierce's reaction to being seen, Jab did not react other than by relinquishing Pierce and getting to his feet. Jab bowed once and left the courtyard without a word or a backwards glance. Pierce felt both relieved to be able to straighten up and act as if nothing had happened, and queerly disappointed that Jab had walked away.

He leaped to his feet and tried to cover his discomfiture by greeting his wealthy friends loudly and jovially. They seemed not to have noticed anything peculiar in his choosing to exercise with Jab. Probably, he realized with relief, they all took similar exercise, and certainly they had no way of knowing Jab was anything more than a personal trainer, so there was no reason to be embarrassed by his friendship. "That your manservant?" drawled one of them now in an affected accent. "Skillful brute. I wouldn't mind taking a few pointers form him m'self."

"He doesn't give lessons to anyone but me," Pierce said quickly.

"Aha, trying to keep an edge, are you?" said another of his friends, punching him cheerfully in the arm. "Good plan. Don't give away all your secrets, eh? You might want to go a few rounds with one of us, after all."

Chattering loudly and pointlessly the group left the courtyard in search of strong drink and comfortable chairs. PrincessB waited until she was sure they were shut away in her cousin's study, and then entered the castle herself.

She found her father standing in front of one of the windows, smiling in a self-satisfied manner. "Sire," she said meekly, "how came these louts and ruffians to the castle? I thought perhaps Pierce had outgrown their company of late, and learned to set himself higher standards."

"I invited them," her father said carelessly. "I thought it would do Pierce good to spend some time among his own kind, so I sent for his friends." PrincessB fled to the safety of her rooms feeling appalled and anguished, locked the door, and burst into overwrought tears.


The Dreams of Angels
I. Introduction
II. Chapter One
III. Chapter Two