Post by westernsunset on Nov 3, 2018 1:13:26 GMT 10
Title: The Way I Want to Walk
Rating: PG
Prompt: Freedom
Summary: Everyone is seeking something from the Dancing Dove.
Author's Note: Inspiration and title taken from the Bruce Springsteen song, Out in the Street
“We made it!” Gary whooped. “Just when we thought we’d never see another sunny day, never see a time without classwork, here we are! We shall struggle no more! We shall be the free men we were destined to be!”
“So you’re not at all excited for summer, are you Gary?” Jon said as the squires (plus Alan) filed out into the bright sunlight.
“Excited? Jon, I am amazed. To have made it through that year? It’s a miracle,” Gary said, turning his face to the sun. Jon laughed. For all his teasing, he was happy to be done with classwork too.
“Dancing Dove? Shall we go to the Dancing Dove?” Gary said, looking around at the squires (plus Alan) with hope in his eyes.
Alex smiled tightly. “I don’t think I can. My knightmaster doesn’t stop over the summer.”
“It’s our first day of real freedom! Have Jon talk to him,” Raoul suggested, throwing an arm around Alex.
Alex shook it off. “Don’t talk to him Jon. I’m happy to serve, unlike some of you,” he said before he stalked off without a word.
“Someone’s been in a bad mood since his feet hit the floor this morning,” Jon said, raising his eyebrows.
Gary didn’t say anything, just watched Alex go. He knew Alex’s mood started to shift when he became Roger’s squired. He’d watched his friend become even more withdrawn, secretive, intense. But when he tried to bring it up, Alex had brushed him off, so Gary had dropped it. But that didn’t mean it didn’t worry him.
He shook his head slightly to clear it. There wasn’t anything he could do about it now, so he turned to the rest of his friends. “The rest of us? Dancing Dove?” Nods all around.
Gary knew he was intelligent. He’d had tutors praise him for it all his life, and his father was constantly giving him books and engaging him in discussions to make sure he understood the important parts of what he’d read. He knew he had more of an aptitude for book learning than other boys his age did.
What he suspected, but didn’t know, was that he had a wisdom boys his age didn’t possess. Well, maybe not a wisdom, but a perception that was beyond his years. Unlike Jon, who led from the gut, or Raoul who seemed to consider everyone a friend, no matter what, Gary took a measured view on people. He enjoyed puzzling over their differences, considering their motivations, always trying to see all sides of a person before making a determination on their character or looking at a situation from every possible angle. His friends sometimes made fun of him when he would bring up different ideas, or poke holes in their plans. He knew people didn’t like when someone pointed out their weaknesses or contradicted them, but he couldn’t always help himself.
That’s why he enjoyed the Dancing Dove. There, he didn’t seem paranoid, or like he was overthinking a situation. George and his Court appreciated Gary’s ability to think through a situation. They’d bring their plans to him, asking him spot problem areas, help them improve. In George, Gary found a kindred spirit, someone who was as interested in the specifics of people as he was, someone who saw all sides of a situation.
He didn’t have to worry about overthinking things in the Dancing Dove. More likely, when he pointed out an alternative situation, someone would clap him on the back and agree, or better yet, challenge him. It was those discussions that taught Gary the most, and he liked that no one was afraid to disagree with him, that they had their own points that helped him rethink his beliefs and sometimes even change his mind. It was completely different from the palace, where he felt he was told how to think, and Gary relished every moment of it.
—
Raoul knew the talk. He knew what people thought of him, that he was the muscle to Jon’s little band, while Gary and Alex supplied the intelligence and the strategy. He knew that the teachers thought he was dumb, that even his friends considered him naive for being so friendly.
He even understood why they thought that. When he’d first arrived at the palace, he’d struggled with the academics. Raoul hadn’t had private tutors like lots of the other boys. His father didn’t want him thinking he was better than the other boys his age at Goldenlake, and they’d all shared a tutor, and the work of maintaining the land. He didn’t realize how behind he was until he came to the palace. He’d caught up some, but the mathematics, the history, the etiquette, it just didn’t come naturally to him. More often than not, he relied on his charm to get teachers on his side, or convince his yearmates to help with his homework.
On the practice courts, he excelled. All the struggles he had in class, his inability to see the connections or the next step, that all went away. If there was an intelligence to fighting, to swordsmanship, or riding, Raoul possessed it in spades.
But that’s what all of them were expected to have, and any skill Raoul may have had was overlooked, or chalked up to his size. No one at the palace was particularly impressed with him, and he knew lots of the instructors thought he was successful only because Jon had taken pity on him, taken him under his wing. And many people thought he was odd for being so friendly with the servants. It was all Raoul knew. He didn’t understand why he wouldn’t talk to anyone who lived in the palace. It’s what he had done at Goldenlake. But here, it was frowned upon.
Not at the Dancing Dove. There, people knew him separately from Jon. His friends at the tavern delighted in challenging him to contests of strength, some of which he lost, many of which he won. For the first time since he’d come to the palace, he was impressive in his own right, not just for his height and strength, but for his personality, his friendly nature. Sure, many of the hardened thieves would sit him down, extol the virtues of a guarded personality, but they would talk to him. Everyone would talk to him. Everyone liked him, and down in the city, that wasn’t a bad thing. He wasn’t the weird one for making conversation with anyone he met, like he was in the palace. He didn’t have to monitor his behavior, fit into what was expected of a noble, or a friend of the prince, and he found himself coming to the tavern as much as possible, just for the freedom.
—
Alanna was relieved Alex wasn’t coming to the Dancing Dove. Clearly Gary and Jon and Raoul had told him about the tavern and about George, but Alanna was still reluctant to bring Alex into that part of her life. But she understood why the rest of her friends loved the Dancing Dove so much. Down there, they didn’t have to be the put together oldest sons of prominent nobles, or heirs to the throne. They didn’t have to young men trying to be knights, they could just be wealthy young men, making the kinds of mistakes all young men did.
Did she resent she wasn’t able to make those same mistakes? Was she jealous when she saw the boys flirting with whoever they wanted, letting the guard down, shedding the stress they felt in the palace? Of course. The boys looked at the end of classes as a time of freedom, but she had to keep working all the time, monitoring her walk, her voice, all the elements of her disguise, rarely being able to let her guard down.
Except with George. He’d known about her hidden gender for a year or so, and when the two of them would talk, she could be exactly herself. George let her do that, be whoever she was feeling in the moment. As much as she liked being at the tavern with everyone else, she found herself more and more seeking out George, being with him in private. Those were the times she could be herself, and the older she was, the more she wanted to be with people who understood her. All of her. And as of now, the only person who really knew her was George.
—
Jon didn’t understand how no one else saw it. Everything in the realm that was unequal. How differently people were treated. The injustice. He would try to bring it up with people, but most people didn’t understand what he was talking about, or they would agree but soon start talking about another topic. He didn’t know how all the wrongs in the world weren’t at the forefront of everyone’s mind.
Of course, he was young. Of course, he didn’t think about the kingdom all the time. But he wasn’t like his friends. He couldn’t take a day off from his duty, or forget what he would eventually become. Even when he was relaxing, he was thinking, taking things in, preparing for the day he would eventually rule.
It could be a lot of pressure, but not for the reasons people thought. He wasn’t overwhelmed by the responsibility, he was overwhelmed by all the changes he needed to make. His father said he was too idealistic, that he’d realize soon that things had to move slowly, that some of the changes Jon wanted to make weren’t going to be possible. But Jon knew his father was wrong. He didn’t say it, but he knew his father was wrong.
George appreciated Jon’s predicament. George was another young man who had power over others, who could use his position to make meaningful changes, and he agreed with Jon’s plans for the kingdom. Talking to George made Jon feel less crazy. Not only did someone else see what was possible for the realm, but George would push him to see injustices where Jon hadn’t thought to look. Jon knew the Dancing Dove, and his friendship with George, would make him a better king, which was one of the reasons he kept coming down to the city.
—
The four friends, each lost in thought, walked out of the palace and into the city. If they’d talked to each other, they would have seen how much each of them loved the Dancing Dove, how stifled they all felt by the palace, how much they all needed the freedom that anonymity provided. But they were still young, still believing the lie that they were so odd, so out of place, that no one would understand who they truly were. So they didn’t say anything to each other, and instead caught their bits of freedom where they could, growing into the people they were always meant to be.
Rating: PG
Prompt: Freedom
Summary: Everyone is seeking something from the Dancing Dove.
Author's Note: Inspiration and title taken from the Bruce Springsteen song, Out in the Street
“We made it!” Gary whooped. “Just when we thought we’d never see another sunny day, never see a time without classwork, here we are! We shall struggle no more! We shall be the free men we were destined to be!”
“So you’re not at all excited for summer, are you Gary?” Jon said as the squires (plus Alan) filed out into the bright sunlight.
“Excited? Jon, I am amazed. To have made it through that year? It’s a miracle,” Gary said, turning his face to the sun. Jon laughed. For all his teasing, he was happy to be done with classwork too.
“Dancing Dove? Shall we go to the Dancing Dove?” Gary said, looking around at the squires (plus Alan) with hope in his eyes.
Alex smiled tightly. “I don’t think I can. My knightmaster doesn’t stop over the summer.”
“It’s our first day of real freedom! Have Jon talk to him,” Raoul suggested, throwing an arm around Alex.
Alex shook it off. “Don’t talk to him Jon. I’m happy to serve, unlike some of you,” he said before he stalked off without a word.
“Someone’s been in a bad mood since his feet hit the floor this morning,” Jon said, raising his eyebrows.
Gary didn’t say anything, just watched Alex go. He knew Alex’s mood started to shift when he became Roger’s squired. He’d watched his friend become even more withdrawn, secretive, intense. But when he tried to bring it up, Alex had brushed him off, so Gary had dropped it. But that didn’t mean it didn’t worry him.
He shook his head slightly to clear it. There wasn’t anything he could do about it now, so he turned to the rest of his friends. “The rest of us? Dancing Dove?” Nods all around.
Gary knew he was intelligent. He’d had tutors praise him for it all his life, and his father was constantly giving him books and engaging him in discussions to make sure he understood the important parts of what he’d read. He knew he had more of an aptitude for book learning than other boys his age did.
What he suspected, but didn’t know, was that he had a wisdom boys his age didn’t possess. Well, maybe not a wisdom, but a perception that was beyond his years. Unlike Jon, who led from the gut, or Raoul who seemed to consider everyone a friend, no matter what, Gary took a measured view on people. He enjoyed puzzling over their differences, considering their motivations, always trying to see all sides of a person before making a determination on their character or looking at a situation from every possible angle. His friends sometimes made fun of him when he would bring up different ideas, or poke holes in their plans. He knew people didn’t like when someone pointed out their weaknesses or contradicted them, but he couldn’t always help himself.
That’s why he enjoyed the Dancing Dove. There, he didn’t seem paranoid, or like he was overthinking a situation. George and his Court appreciated Gary’s ability to think through a situation. They’d bring their plans to him, asking him spot problem areas, help them improve. In George, Gary found a kindred spirit, someone who was as interested in the specifics of people as he was, someone who saw all sides of a situation.
He didn’t have to worry about overthinking things in the Dancing Dove. More likely, when he pointed out an alternative situation, someone would clap him on the back and agree, or better yet, challenge him. It was those discussions that taught Gary the most, and he liked that no one was afraid to disagree with him, that they had their own points that helped him rethink his beliefs and sometimes even change his mind. It was completely different from the palace, where he felt he was told how to think, and Gary relished every moment of it.
—
Raoul knew the talk. He knew what people thought of him, that he was the muscle to Jon’s little band, while Gary and Alex supplied the intelligence and the strategy. He knew that the teachers thought he was dumb, that even his friends considered him naive for being so friendly.
He even understood why they thought that. When he’d first arrived at the palace, he’d struggled with the academics. Raoul hadn’t had private tutors like lots of the other boys. His father didn’t want him thinking he was better than the other boys his age at Goldenlake, and they’d all shared a tutor, and the work of maintaining the land. He didn’t realize how behind he was until he came to the palace. He’d caught up some, but the mathematics, the history, the etiquette, it just didn’t come naturally to him. More often than not, he relied on his charm to get teachers on his side, or convince his yearmates to help with his homework.
On the practice courts, he excelled. All the struggles he had in class, his inability to see the connections or the next step, that all went away. If there was an intelligence to fighting, to swordsmanship, or riding, Raoul possessed it in spades.
But that’s what all of them were expected to have, and any skill Raoul may have had was overlooked, or chalked up to his size. No one at the palace was particularly impressed with him, and he knew lots of the instructors thought he was successful only because Jon had taken pity on him, taken him under his wing. And many people thought he was odd for being so friendly with the servants. It was all Raoul knew. He didn’t understand why he wouldn’t talk to anyone who lived in the palace. It’s what he had done at Goldenlake. But here, it was frowned upon.
Not at the Dancing Dove. There, people knew him separately from Jon. His friends at the tavern delighted in challenging him to contests of strength, some of which he lost, many of which he won. For the first time since he’d come to the palace, he was impressive in his own right, not just for his height and strength, but for his personality, his friendly nature. Sure, many of the hardened thieves would sit him down, extol the virtues of a guarded personality, but they would talk to him. Everyone would talk to him. Everyone liked him, and down in the city, that wasn’t a bad thing. He wasn’t the weird one for making conversation with anyone he met, like he was in the palace. He didn’t have to monitor his behavior, fit into what was expected of a noble, or a friend of the prince, and he found himself coming to the tavern as much as possible, just for the freedom.
—
Alanna was relieved Alex wasn’t coming to the Dancing Dove. Clearly Gary and Jon and Raoul had told him about the tavern and about George, but Alanna was still reluctant to bring Alex into that part of her life. But she understood why the rest of her friends loved the Dancing Dove so much. Down there, they didn’t have to be the put together oldest sons of prominent nobles, or heirs to the throne. They didn’t have to young men trying to be knights, they could just be wealthy young men, making the kinds of mistakes all young men did.
Did she resent she wasn’t able to make those same mistakes? Was she jealous when she saw the boys flirting with whoever they wanted, letting the guard down, shedding the stress they felt in the palace? Of course. The boys looked at the end of classes as a time of freedom, but she had to keep working all the time, monitoring her walk, her voice, all the elements of her disguise, rarely being able to let her guard down.
Except with George. He’d known about her hidden gender for a year or so, and when the two of them would talk, she could be exactly herself. George let her do that, be whoever she was feeling in the moment. As much as she liked being at the tavern with everyone else, she found herself more and more seeking out George, being with him in private. Those were the times she could be herself, and the older she was, the more she wanted to be with people who understood her. All of her. And as of now, the only person who really knew her was George.
—
Jon didn’t understand how no one else saw it. Everything in the realm that was unequal. How differently people were treated. The injustice. He would try to bring it up with people, but most people didn’t understand what he was talking about, or they would agree but soon start talking about another topic. He didn’t know how all the wrongs in the world weren’t at the forefront of everyone’s mind.
Of course, he was young. Of course, he didn’t think about the kingdom all the time. But he wasn’t like his friends. He couldn’t take a day off from his duty, or forget what he would eventually become. Even when he was relaxing, he was thinking, taking things in, preparing for the day he would eventually rule.
It could be a lot of pressure, but not for the reasons people thought. He wasn’t overwhelmed by the responsibility, he was overwhelmed by all the changes he needed to make. His father said he was too idealistic, that he’d realize soon that things had to move slowly, that some of the changes Jon wanted to make weren’t going to be possible. But Jon knew his father was wrong. He didn’t say it, but he knew his father was wrong.
George appreciated Jon’s predicament. George was another young man who had power over others, who could use his position to make meaningful changes, and he agreed with Jon’s plans for the kingdom. Talking to George made Jon feel less crazy. Not only did someone else see what was possible for the realm, but George would push him to see injustices where Jon hadn’t thought to look. Jon knew the Dancing Dove, and his friendship with George, would make him a better king, which was one of the reasons he kept coming down to the city.
—
The four friends, each lost in thought, walked out of the palace and into the city. If they’d talked to each other, they would have seen how much each of them loved the Dancing Dove, how stifled they all felt by the palace, how much they all needed the freedom that anonymity provided. But they were still young, still believing the lie that they were so odd, so out of place, that no one would understand who they truly were. So they didn’t say anything to each other, and instead caught their bits of freedom where they could, growing into the people they were always meant to be.
Maybe once we'd have seen it during Smackdown!