Lenore found the dressing room with the awaiting servant girl. The young girl couldn't have been more than fourteen years old and had her hair pulled back into a bonnet. She wore a light blue dress obviously dyed with berries and other cheap materials, and a white apron that matched her bonnet.
"My Princess." She bowed her head when Lenore entered. "I am Enid..."
"Forgive me, Enid, but I do not have much time for pleasantries. We must hurry as my fight is next." Lenore was hurrying toward her so the girl could undo the ties in both her dress and the corset underneath.
Enid was quick to untie them and help her step out of the dress, as Lenore continued to bark orders at her.
"Once out of the dress and jewelry, I need to get into my armor. After which, the hair and make up need to be taken care of." Lenore stepped into the pants of her armor as Enid tried to remove the necklace at the same time. That was one the bells rang informing them that the battle had ended, and the two minute break would begin.
They fought with the leather armor that had only thin plates of metal covering her. Lenore knew that the others in the melee would wear much heavier and protective gear, but she also knew she could not compete with them in the same manner as they did amongst themselves. There was absolutely no way she could take hits to her weapon and have her arm hold out for long. Her best weapon in these fights was quickness and not getting hit at all. Which is why she opted for the lower protection armor.
The weapons used during the melee were dull and covered in bee's wax for added protection, so while the armor she wore would never stand against a real weapon it would against the tournament weapons.
After her armor was on, she sat down to pull on her boots while Enid worked on losing her buns and getting the circlet out of her hair. Lenore knew fully well that this was the Queen's doing, and she wonder what exactly her intentions had been.
The bells rang from the arena, which told Lenore that she had to arrive in the arena immediately. "Pull my hair up!" She demanded even though none of all the buns were out of her hair and the circlet was still attached.
She pulled on her helmet and found it tight due to the way her hair was pulled up. It also made it difficult to see out of, and the circlet pressed against her scalp and forehead. She rushed toward the door and turned back to Enid briefly.
"Thank you, Enid, I will remember your assistance in this matter." She told the young girl before rushing down the hallway and out into the arena.
Santh and the others look relieved as her time had been dwindling before they removed the South Dorm from the tournament completely. She ran toward the referee and her opponent, who just happened to be Krius.
The large man could see that she was still wearing a great deal of her make-up, which he knew would be a hindrance. They touched swords and the battle began. Lenore would dodge his blows and seemed to be doing rather well at first, but then reality would soon come to the fore front.
The circlet pressed against her head as if it desired to make it burst, and her hair was making the helmet unforgiving. The worst was soon to come, as her make-up began to smear from the sweat making it impossible to see.
Remus collected bets for the next battle as Ophelia walked behind him and put the money in a large velvet purse. He would write down the names and the bids as he walked along. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Lenore battle the large man.
She initially seemed strong and able to avoid any attacks, but as time went on she started to seem confused. If Krius landed a mortal blow then she would lose the battle. She didn't seem like her normal self by any means, as she was only avoiding attacks and not attempting to attack herself. It was as if she could barely make out where her opponent was.
"Remus." Ophelia placed her hand on his shoulder as they arrived back at the seating area for the South Dorm families.
It was a strange mixture of Souchan, Mondue, Commoner's, but luckily the Royals were no where near them. It was awkward enough as it stood.
"Some thing is wrong." Ophelia informed everyone. "Why is she just running around like that? I've seen her fight larger men."
Remus was sitting behind her next to his father, and he leaned forward so she could hear him over the roar of the crowd. "She seems to be having trouble with her helmet."
He sat back up and Pymus looked over at this son. "There is a worry in your eyes son, did you bet on the lass?"
A smirk came over his face and he shook his head as he talked a low as he could to his father. "The amount of make-up and the way her hair was, I knew she could never change completely in time. The eye make-up that the Royal women wear will run into their eyes when they sweat, and cause obstructed vision. I knew better than to bet on her, even if she is one I can comfortably call a friend."
Pymus patted his son's back, as he laughed.
"Oh, no!" Odelia who was sitting in front of Pymus and covering her eyes. "He's going to kill her!"
"There is no killing, mother. The swords are dull and covered with bee's wax. She will be fine. Remus thinks that her helmet is the problem. I have seen her fight with far more grace than that." As soon as Ophelia spoke those words, she covered her own eyes as Krius slapped her in the back with his dull short sword.
Even if the blade could not kill, it certainly seemed able to knock the wind from the Princess' body. She laid on the ground for several moments as the referee called the match, and then attended to her.
"Is she alright?" Odelia stood up slightly in an attempt to get a better look.
"She's stronger than she appears." Remus spoke from behind them in an effort to calm the two women down. "She'll stand up in a couple moments, just you see."
Pymus agreed with his son and looked around at the seats as everyone seemed to be holding a collective breath.
Lenore finally stood up and headed toward her dorm mates. When she arrived they all watched as her helmet was removed and thrown to the ground with as much strength as she could muster.
"Her hair still has buns." Ophelia noticed. "No wonder her helmet was bothering her. Maybe, I should go down there..." She stopped speaking when Santh began to remove the little metal flowers and the buns from her hair. "That is so sweet." Ophelia grabbed at her heart.
Odelia was also delighted to witness the moment of tenderness.
Pymus turned his attention to his son. "Well, you certainly called that one."
"Yes, I did." Remus smirked proudly even if he didn't believe that his father was speaking about the match.
Lenore stomped toward her dorm mates as she passed the Queen, she could hear the woman tell her that it was appropriate for a woman not to defeat her future husband. She ignored her as she continued on her path toward the South Dorm waiting area and found Santh approaching her. "What was that? It was like you were fighting blind out there!"
She grabbed her helmet from her head and threw it to the ground. "I was! That blasted woman knew what she was doing to me!" Lenore grabbed the circlet around her forehead and yanked at it once, but it remained attached.
The others could see a deep imprint of the flower charm on her forehead. Her eyes were completely painted black and dripping down her cheeks. As the more the make-up got into her eyes, the more her eyes teared up.
"I need to rinse my eyes out! My next match is after this one!" Lenore barked. There was a water trough near by as she bent over it to rinse off her face. Routine unfortunately found his fully armored body in her way and they had to dace left to right for a couple moments, before he was able to make his escape.
When she stood up, she was offered a cloth to dry herself before Santh made her sit down in one of the chairs. With as much gentleness he could muster, he began picking the pins and metallic flowers from her hair.
Jolon grabbed a nearby cloth, dipped it in the water trough, and rubbed a small amount of the bar soup against it. He knelt down before her and began to assist with removing the make-up that was smeared all over her face. Anton followed suite and the two worked calmly on her face, while Santh slowly pulled pins from her hair. Routine could barely lift an arm to help, so he merely leaned against the walls of arena as sitting wasn't an option at this moment.
"How many are there in here?" Santh asked with a large pile already laid at his feet. The look on his face told of astonishment for how many pins one head could hold.
"Enough to make it impossible for me to win my first battle." Lenore growled, she would have glared at the Queen had her eyes not been closed and covered with soap.
Anton looked at Jolon briefly as if he was asking if the woman before them was actually accusing the Queen of hindering her. "Do you truly believe she did this on purpose?"
Lenore snorted. "Of course, she did. That woman does nothing without purpose."
Anton began to wipe down her face with a rinsed cloth, as Jolon tried to assist Santh in removing the hair pins.
None of the group paid any attention to the next battle that was held against the Krius and the Mondue. None, but Routine who had very little to do in the matter of helping Lenore disrobe.
"One loss will not be the end of us." Santh told her in a calming voice. "There have been plenty who have finished last on any of the three days, and still won their part of the tournament."
"Yes, do not allow this to burden your other battles." Jolon joined in.
Lenore frowned, "I have no intention of allowing her to sour my outlook. I plan on winning from here on out. Actually, she may have done me a favor today, because the others will think I am not a worthy opponent and make mistakes."
The boys chuckled.
"I think you have a couple swords worth of metal in your hair, Lenore." Anton who was still knelt down in front of her told her as the pile continued to build.
Finally, her last pin was removed and Anton shoved the others out of the way. He quickly braided her hair for her and then tucked the tail underneath the braid. He used the pins at his feet to keep them in place.
"I have sisters." He informed the three men who were staring at him while he worked. "There." He stepped back as Lenore's name was called once more.
"Now, watch me gain my revenge!" Lenore barked and yanked her helmet from Routine's grasp.
Pymus sat behind the two women amused by the older woman's constant attempts to peek between her fingers. Odelia would whimper whenever the Souchan swung at Lenore, but the princess was agile enough to dodge each attack. She had done well enough in her last battle as blind as she had been, however this battle made the differences all too clear. This fact did not comfort the fretting Romanus woman as she squeaked and shivered with each attack.
"Mother, you are making me nervous." Ophelia whimpered.
Peeking through her fingers, Odelia bit her bottom lip. "I am sorry, dear. Oh no! Watch out, Lenore!" She yelled from behind her hands.
Her daughter frowned. "I have seen Lenore train for weeks now, she is very good. There was just something wrong with her last time."
Pymus looked over at his son and watched how closely the young lad was listening to and concerning himself with the women before him. Even if he said nothing to them, he was present in their conversation.
In the distance, Lenore made her fatal attack and was deemed the winner of this match. Odelia jumped to her feet immediately and began clapping with all the power she could muster. Ophelia mimicked her movements and they both cheered for the Princess.
"Lenore! You were brilliant!" Odelia yelled.
The Princess was a good distance from them, but she turned to the group when she heard her name and gave a brief wave in their direction.
"How would you know? Your eyes were covered most of the time." Ophelia playfully spoke to her mother.
A smile crossed the woman's face. "She doesn't need to know that." She sat back down as the two minute break began. "How many more will there be?"
"You attended Apisarn, mother, surely you went to the tournaments before."
Slowly, she shook her head. "No, I preferred the festivities outside the arena more."
Pymus leaned forward to bring himself into this conversation. "That was the third fight of the melee, there will be three more. Followed by archery which goes very quickly, then we have unarmed which will be another six matches."
"My word, all in one day?" Odelia placed her hand over her heart.
"There is still more." Ophelia took over the explanation. "After unarmed, there is hammer throwing and finally jousting right before the feast. They will do this for three days in a row."
Looking over her shoulder at Pymus, Odelia inhaled deeply. "I don't suppose you brought an umbrella? I simply can not be exposed to the sun for that long."
Remus reached under his sit and handed the wooden framed umbrella to her. "I brought one for all the ladies." He grabbed another and offered it out to Ophelia, who shook her head. His attention was then turned to Renata Nicoletti, who graciously accepted it. Both Lena Pugh and Edith Marsh rejected the offer, though Lena would look over from time to time as if she regretted the decision.
"Thank you, Remus." Odelia opened up the umbrella which hit Pymus in the thigh and when she lifted it up, it smacked him in the face.
Remus smiled at his father's discomfort, and Pymus gave his son a comical look as Ophelia realized what was going on.
"Mother, you are hitting him." She grabbed her mother's umbrella and pulled it downward.
Odelia looked behind her. "Beg pardon." She spoke in an light voice that told of her embarrassment.
"Turn it toward the sun, it is hitting your arms more than anything." Her daughter ordered. When her mother finally settled and the next round began, Ophelia turned her attention to Remus. "I blame you for that!" She barely whispered to him before turning back around and watching the tournament.
Remus threw his hands up and shrugged as if he had no idea what she was talking about. Pymus elbowed his son, "All done with the bets?"
"Until archery begins." He leaned back on his seat and put his hands behind his head.
The melee was over which no one but the Royal Dorm was happy about, as Lenore was in second place for the day. Though Santh kept reminding them that there were two more days and four more events to make up for the lost points. That did not comfort Anton in these moments as he waited for his own tournament to begin.
Anton found himself standing with the other three archers on an elevated platform. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, until he saw Lenore in the distance waving a handkerchief at him. She had told him many times before to use the one in his pocket and not his hands as he didn't want to get them wet.
The crowd began to settle as the arbitrator walked out into the arena grounds and made his way to the platform. All the teams except the archers had been placed to the far left of the platforms so it would be difficult for their own teams mates to see their points due to their angle.
Anton was closest to them and could hear most of what they were yelling though the crowd would soon drown them out. Next to him was the Souchan, followed by the Mondue, and finally the Prince. He had been warned for weeks now that the Prince would be his rival in this, but it wasn't until he saw the calm, collected man standing on the platform did it become a reality.
Lesatan didn't look to be worried in the least, and Anton had been informed why. Her brother was an avid hunter and archer. The Prince would have no difficulty hitting his target, but Anton knew he had to worry more about what he was doing and less about the other combatants.
The chubby, balding arbitrator stood in front of the four of them and began to speak. "Archers will fire right to left. While the others are firing, you must reload and wait your turn. If you are not ready to fire when you turn appears again, you will forfeit that turn. If you knock an arrow from your target those points will be lost. Any questions?"
There was only silence as a retort.
"Then let us begin!" The arbitrator walked up the platform to stand behind the boys. He would follow each one as they fired to ensure that nothing out of the ordinary was occurring. His other duty was to yell out the points that each shot earned. "My Prince." He gave Lesatan the command to begin the tournament.
Anton prepared his bow for his turn as he was warned these rounds were quick. The archery section was the shortest part of the tournament. Lenore had told him to think of his position as bonus points for the teams. While it took a great deal of skill, it was over faster than one could bat an eyelash.
He fired and prepared his short bow to be fired once more. Tomorrow would be long bows which he found far more difficult to hit a target with, and then finally crossbows. He kept telling himself that it was only two more times he would have to complete this task. Only two more times, he would stand on equal footing with a future king.
Once more he fired, and prepared himself. Anton barely recognized where his arrows were hitting, and the sounds of his dorm mates cheering for him were completely drowned out. He was lost in his own mind, and only found himself even reacting when he heard the Souchan next to him fire his own bow.
The last arrow was shot off and Anton lowered his bow. His eyes went immediately to his teacher, Lenore, who was clapping while the rest of his team mates looked rather pleased as well. He looked at the target to verify that he had done well.
A smile came to his lips when he noticed he had hit the center target once and the second ring twice. His eyes followed down the targets to see how his competitors had done. He scored higher than the Mondue and the Souchan. When his eyes fell upon the Prince's target, he could barely believe it. Lesatan had hit the center target once, followed by the second ring, and the arrow for his third shot sat on the line between the second and third ring.
The arbitrator was examining it to determine whether he would receive eight or six points. Anton couldn't remember what the arbitrator had said the points were when Lesatan fired the shot. It didn't truly matter to him however. He had only begun to learn archery weeks ago, and Lesatan was considered an elite amongst them. In a few moments, Anton knew that he would either be tied with or have beaten the Prince on the first day.
When he was finished he walked up to the platform and announced loudly. "I stand by my previous assessment. Six points!"
Anton half expected Lesatan to throw a fit, but he graciously bowed to the arbitrator and thanked him for his closer inspection. Lesatan exited the platform as did the rest of the competitors. The archery was over for the day.
Santh stretched himself as he prepared for his first battle of the day. Lenore stood beside him as the man from the Souchan Dorms readied himself. He was a larger Souchan, but Santh certainly out weighed him.
They had placed several posts up in the center of the arena with the dirt ground being their only flooring. Scraps and cuts during this portion of the tournaments were inevitable. Melee and jousting mostly gave bruises, but unarmed would be a great deal of skin being scrapped against the ground. Knees being fallen onto, submission holds going wrong, and there was a real threat of bones breaking.
While Lenore, Anton, and Jolon came to stand ring side to cheer on their team mate. Routine still dressed in full armor had taken to sitting on a bench while he waited for his tournament to begin. He constantly complained that he did not see why he had to be dressed for battle so early in the day. Lenore explained that sometimes they switch the tournaments around if there is a malfunction with the equipment or if he is not in full battle gear when he is called then he would be disqualified. She also told him that he needed to be out here cheering for his team, not locked away especially during the hammer throwing. Routine wanted nothing of her responses and only seemed to pout further.
"What do you think?" Santh asked Lenore.
Anton and Jolon were surprised by the amount of camaraderie the two of them had during the tournament. Normally, they ignored each other or bickered, but today it seemed like none of that matter to them.
"The Souchan and the Royal are nothing. It's the other Mondue. He is taller and heavier than you, so it might take more than one shot to finish him off." Lenore put her hand on his shoulder, causing him to look over at her. "Your one blessing is that you were in street brawls, these spoiled brats only know unarmed in it's most basic form. They are going to try to wrestle you into submission, and if they get a hold on you they just might take you to the ground. You do not have the training to break yourself out of a hold, so just one simple rule: Don't go to the ground. You can't win there."
Santh nodded in agreement and then took his shirt off, so that he was in nothing but the sanctioned shorts. Once the shirt was gone, several girls from the crowd cheered. The large man looked confused and began to survey the area for what these girls were so thrilled for.
"What is that?" He asked.
Anton chuckled. "I believe they are cheering for the simple fact that you took your shirt off."
Lenore smirked, "I know I was cheering on the inside."
"Don't start now, Lenore." He warned as he turned his back to her and gave himself a couple more stretches.
The Princess looked toward a particular raunchy collection of girls that were calling out Santh's name to him. Several of them were blowing kisses or causing other disturbances such as briefly lifting their skirts for him. Santh didn't seem to pay any attention in the slightest to them as he made his way to the ring.
Lenore never realized how popular her dorm mate actually was, though she wondered if he was aware of it himself. Apparently, she was not the only one thinking such thoughts as Santh made his way out of ear shot.
Jolon came to stand next to the Princess, "It's the dark and broody persona that gets that reaction, isn't it?"
Lenore giggled. "That man is built like a stallion, and he pays no attention to the women around him. He is absolutely desirable."
Santh stepped into the ring and bumped fists with his competitor. The thin, lanky arbitrator began to speak. "No hits to the genitals and no biting or clawing. Any questions?" When he was answered with silence, he tossed up his hands. "Begin!"
Santh pulled back his fist and punched the Souchan with all the power he could muster. The man fell to the ground immediately, and the crowd was hushed. Even the arbitrator looked shocked. Every unarmed battle was fought with a few punches, but it was mostly choke holds and getting the other person to submit.
Kneeling down, the arbitrator checked on the fallen competitor. He called for someone to assist the unconscious boy, before grabbing Santh's hand and tossing it into the air. "Winner!"
Santh was also the second fight. He remained in the ring for the two minute break as they removed the unconscious man. Armand stepped inside for the second battle having lost jousting to Authin. They bumped fists and the arbitrator offered the rules to them once more.
"Please don't hit me that hard." Armand whimpered.
"I make no promises." Santh grinned as the fight began, and Armand was immediately knocked to the ground.
Santh would go on to win all three of his fights for the day in front of a rather silent audience, though the other Mondue did need a few more hits before he was finished.
Jolon had watched how nervous his friend had been standing on the platform as he competed with the Prince. He had laughed internally at the fear and determination that Anton showed. He never once looked away from the target the entire time. When Anton left the platform, Jolon had teased the man for the fearful look that had been plastered across his face.
Now that the hammer throwing tournament was about to begin, he wished he could take it all back. The Prince's dimwitted adviser stood amongst them. He believed his name was Enoch, though he had only heard his name in passing.
The sand pit was nearly six lengths of Jolon himself. The largest area in front of them was the zero point area, the marked territories after that went in points of two and as their points increased the area grew smaller. Santh had informed him that precision was the key to the hammer throwing tournament. If you do not hit the sand pit, then you do not receive points. If you over throw the sand pit, then you do not receive points. All this was explained by the tall, broad arbitrator, but Jolon had heard it too many times before.
The crowd seemed to enjoy the hammer throwing as a few more people filtered in from the festivities when it was announced.
The Souchan was first to make his three tosses, leaving Jolon, Enoch, and the Mondue standing on the side lines. The only time their teams could be near them during the tournaments was to assist in the unarmed. The rest of the tournaments each person was on their own when it came to strategy.
"I hear you picked this up weeks ago." Enoch addressed his remarked to Jolon. "I've been doing this since the first year I arrived." He began to count on his fingers.
"Four years." Jolon informed him and the man looked at him with curiosity. "Your tabard is dark green, you are a forth year."
Enoch grinned, "Ah, yes."
The Souchan finished and the Mondue was up next. The Souchan was exhausted and went to sit down on a nearby bench.
"All three of us do this every year." Enoch explained and motioned toward himself and the other two competitors. "It will be interesting to see how you do with little training."
"I am not certain, milord, but are you attempting to intimidate me?" Jolon wasn't too sure as for the most part it seemed like rather polite conversation.
The adviser chuckled. "The tournament is intimidating enough, don't you think? My comments were more in line that Santh was the man I expected to be the challenger, but instead he sends his student. Santh did the tournament a while back and nearly got a perfect score. It will be interesting to see why he has so much faith in you."
Jolon didn't know what to say to the high powered man. It felt like he was being insulted, but then Enoch's voice carried no anger or annoyance in it. In truth, he seemed rather friendly if not just simple. He wondered if any complex thoughts passed through this man's mind.
"It will be interesting on my end as well." He finally responded.
"Ah, my turn." Enoch grabbed the hammer that his competitor handed to him and turned to Jolon with a grin. "I would ask you for good luck, but it would seem self defeating from your stand point."
He watched the tall and lanky man head toward the sand pit. Enoch stopped once to give a wave to the crowd to which some girls called out to him, and then he offered a bow to his Prince who was standing with the other groups across the arena in a safety area.
Jolon looked at the other two men who had taken to the bench. The Souchan was rubbing his shoulders with some sort of herbal lotion, while the Mondue turned his neck from side to side as if it hurt but he didn't wish to admit it. He wondered how long he could do this before he started to look as destroyed as they did.
Suddenly a hammer handle was shoved into his face. "Do your best." Enoch told him with support in his voice and then patted him on the shoulder before heading over to the bench to massage his own shoulder.
Jolon made his way over to the sand pit and took a couple deep breaths, before he began. He couldn't hear his team mates cheering for him, but he knew they would be as he had for them. He spun around and began to toss his hammer for his three consecutive tries.
Across the arena, Jolon's team mates stood slightly away from the rest of the group. Even though the other guilds had left them well enough alone, Anton and Santh felt uncomfortable standing near them. So the group moved away which seemed to relieve both the Unmentionable's Dorm and everyone else from the other dorms.
Lesatan had been the one to look most bothered and he seemed to relax as soon as his sister gave him some distance. Though Authin had tried to engage Lenore in some banter, but she was quick to move away with the rest of her group.
Routine just felt uncomfortable with the entire situation and couldn't believe he was excited that his tournament would be up next. The cloth he had under his armor was soaked with sweat from the heat and water from his greatest humiliation of the day yet. He was beginning to lose his temper and everyone was well aware, so they left him to his misery.
"I think that was a seven!" Lenore smacked Santh's bare shoulder as they watched the first toss.
Santh had yet to put on his shirt though he was covered in sweat.
Lenore looked at her wet hand and frowned. "Disgusting." She pulled the handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her hand off. "Put your shirt back on."
"I do not wish to. I am hot and sweaty, and the shirt makes me uncomfortable." Santh crossed his arms.
"We wouldn't want our delicate flower to be uncomfortable." Routine snapped as he attempted to lean against the wooden arena walls in the full armor.
Lenore grinned as did Anton, though Santh looked unamused. He felt bad enough for his team mate, but didn't understand why Routine had to take away his suffering. There were others in the armor as well, and they didn't look nearly as tormented as he did.
"When I must urinate, which despite my best efforts to avoid any liquids I still found myself a slave to nature, they place me under a contraption with a large bucket of water directly above my head." He attempted to through his hand above his head, but stopped himself when it made a large clanking noise.
Lenore shook her head but allowed him to continue as she turned back to the tournament taking place before her.
"When the lever is pulled, I am drenched in said water. This allows the urine and water to drain out of small holes in my full metal boots. Oh, did I mention that servants watch as you urinate upon yourself? Perhaps you should inquire if this torture device can be exploited to efficiently assist you in becoming more comfortable, little Prince." Routine's voice could barely hide the disdain he was feeling and normally the man needed no effort in hiding his feelings if they even existed to begin with.
"Ah, a cranky version of our dear Routine. I dare say I thought such an event could never be." Santh mocked him. "Thank you for the advice, dear friend. During the two minute break, I will inquire about this device. It sounds wonderful to a man such as myself not clad in iron and able to reach my genitals for urinating."
"Alright, you two." Lenore interrupted. "Jolon just finished his tosses, and neither of you were even paying attention."
They both looked toward the sand pit as Jolon walked away looking rather depressed. He had come in third place and had only beaten the Souchan by two points.
"He looks upset." Lenore looked to Santh. "Perhaps, you should speak to him since you are his tutor. Let him know that he has two more days to gain, this is not the end."
Santh glared down at the woman. "I know what to say. I do not need you to dictate my every action, Princess."
She sighed audibly and purposely cocked her head to the side to look exhausted. "Great, you and Byron are cranky now. Both of you need to go to bed early tonight, you big children."
The last tournament of the day was about to begin. Routine had never rushed off so quickly as when it was announced they would begin shortly. He cursed under his breath and promised to never again agree to this torture, though he spoke loud enough as he walked away that his team mates were certain to hear.
Lenore and the others took to the stadium seating with their parents and the rest of their dorm. The queen had motioned for her to come sit near them, but she bowed as politely as possible in rejection. When the older woman looked upset, the king whispered in her ear. If Lenore knew her father, she assumed he was telling her that she needed to be with her team mates in effort to support their jouster.
Taking her seat between Odelia and Santh, they watched as the arena was transformed into a jousting ring. Horses were brought in that had been waiting in the stables all day, and the fully armored knights were each given a random horse.
Jolon and Anton both sat next to their parents which also meant they were sitting next to each other. Though they were so exhausted from their day, both were glad to be sitting in the back rows as most commoners do. This way they could lean back and take brief naps without bothering the people behind them.
Renata and Vidal Nicoletti had offered the Princess a sit next to them, but Lenore had already taken her seat beside Odelia and declined. Routine's parents did not seem pleased that she had done so, but there was little they could do about it.
Though it had surprised almost everyone when Santh entered the stands and sat immediately down next to Lenore. Anton and Jolon had known they had been discussing strategies with each other all day. They would later share it with the others in effort to make their battles better for tomorrow.
"I hear the Souchan, Contreras something or other, is a very talented jouster." Lenore informed Santh.
"Broderick Contreras." Santh informed her. "He has won a few times, but he is not undefeated. I wonder how he will feel jousting against the technical future king of the Souchan, however. After all, he has been known to take a fall when the Royals are losing."
Lenore pressed her lips together. "Well, let us hope that does not occur. We wouldn't want the other students to think we had cheated or convinced someone to purposely lose."
The larger man agreed.
Odelia, Ophelia, Remus, and Pymus were all sitting close to them and listened carefully to their conversation.
They began to announce the names of the jousters, and as they did so each man mounted his stead and prepared himself.
Authin was one of the jousters and as soon as he mounted his horse, the girls cheered his name and clapped. A male servant approached him and offered him two roses to which he raised into the air as if they were swords. "These two roses shall go to the two most beautiful women in the arena today!" He shouted at the top of his lung.
"Oh no." Lenore whimpered.
He road over to the shaded box and offered one rose to the queen. "My queen, the largest and most beautiful one for you, of course."
Queen Aletta smiled at the young man and accepted his gift. "Thank you, Lord Authin."
He gave a brief bow before he road toward Lenore, though some girls in the crowd did not give up hope that it would be them and would call out his name as he road by. He came to a halt in front of Lenore, and offered out the rose. "My princess, please accept this humble gift. Be careful of thorns, however, though they have all been cut away, I suspect it may grow some out of spite, simply to prick you out of jealousy. For your beauty far surpasses it's own."
Lenore took the rose from him with as polite of a smile as she could muster. She knew better than to cause a scene in these moments. She would have to talk to Authin later about such public displays, though he did give one to the Queen. Yet, she knew why he had done so. Calling her the most beautiful and leaving out the Queen would surely earn him scorn from her highness.
She laid the rose on her lap and watched as Authin road away and the jousting begin. Odelia made a comment about how sweet the man had been, but Lenore didn't wish to speak of it.
Remus leaned over with a slight smirk on his lips. "He definitely wants to prick you, but not with any rose thorn."
Lenore turned around and smacked the merchant on his shoulder twice, as Pymus and the Romanus girls chuckled. Remus also laughed and the slightly amused Lenore turned back around. Santh was still seated next to her and he looked down at the rose briefly, but said nothing.
It took a while for Routine to be removed from his armor, and everyone from the dorm except Remus and Ophelia were too exhausted to go to the feast after the tournament. Routine found himself in last place and was the most unpleasant of the group. His body was bruised and battered from his three battles of the day, and all he wanted to do was lay down and sleep. He would have to wake early tomorrow as well in order to be placed in the uncomfortable armor.
Everyone exited to their rooms except for Lenore who went into Routine's and Anton's, where she laid down on her old bed. They left the sliding doors open so they could speak to each other clearly enough.
"We did well today. Tomorrow, we will need to try harder." Lenore told them as she laid on her stomach with her cheek pressed firmly against the pillow.
"I hope this wasn't my idea to join this tournament." Anton mumbled from the top bunk. "Otherwise, I am the dumbest man alive."
The group could barely laugh but a few chuckles were released.
"We will either grow too tired to compete, or our bodies will grow used to the demand." Santh laid on his back and stared up at the ceiling.
"You did well today, Anton." Lenore told the younger boy who had chosen to crawl down from his top bunk, and lay down on the solid ground. His back ached and the bed did not assist, when Jolon noticed him do so, he mimicked the action from his own top bunk.
"Thank you." He told them as everyone else echoed Lenore's compliment.
"Greetings, brave warriors." Remus entered into the hall with Ophelia standing beside him. "If you would be so kind as to follow us out into the court." He gave no further explanation as he and the girl turned around and immediately left.
Lenore looked at Routine, who was unamused though he stood up to see what was occurring. She followed him and Anton out, though Santh and Jolon already stood in front of the stairway.
All of their parents except the Queen and King stood in the courtyard, and they clapped for their children minus Anton's father, Nolan, who stood with his arms crossed. The court yard still had tables from that morning, and the parents had brought food from the feast or rather someone's parents had gotten some servants to deliver them.
Everyone would later guess it was either Lenore's father or Routine's parents. Lenore was certain that her father would never do such a thing, but the parents would never say who planned the little feast.
Odelia stepped forward and hugged each one of them. "You all did so well today." She told them when she finished. "You should eat to get your strength up for tomorrow."
Ophelia bounced up behind her mother. "We brought a lot of every thing. So, our brave warriors get first pick of whatever they want."
Jolon and Routine moved quickly to get themselves a meal, while Anton stared at his father who looked displeased with this entire arrangement. He couldn't tell if his father was angry with him being in the tournament or if it was about eating near this dirty dorm, either way he was worried what he might say. After a moment, he moved toward the tables to fill his own plate.
During that time, Lenore looked over at Santh who seemed unable to understand what was occurring in these moments. She grabbed his upper arm and pulled him toward the table. "Let's eat! They brought this all the way here for us. Be gracious."
The next couple of hours would be filled with laughter, as everyone retold stories of the past day. Though, Nolan remained stoned face the entire evening not even his wife could break his icy glare.
"My Princess." She bowed her head when Lenore entered. "I am Enid..."
"Forgive me, Enid, but I do not have much time for pleasantries. We must hurry as my fight is next." Lenore was hurrying toward her so the girl could undo the ties in both her dress and the corset underneath.
Enid was quick to untie them and help her step out of the dress, as Lenore continued to bark orders at her.
"Once out of the dress and jewelry, I need to get into my armor. After which, the hair and make up need to be taken care of." Lenore stepped into the pants of her armor as Enid tried to remove the necklace at the same time. That was one the bells rang informing them that the battle had ended, and the two minute break would begin.
They fought with the leather armor that had only thin plates of metal covering her. Lenore knew that the others in the melee would wear much heavier and protective gear, but she also knew she could not compete with them in the same manner as they did amongst themselves. There was absolutely no way she could take hits to her weapon and have her arm hold out for long. Her best weapon in these fights was quickness and not getting hit at all. Which is why she opted for the lower protection armor.
The weapons used during the melee were dull and covered in bee's wax for added protection, so while the armor she wore would never stand against a real weapon it would against the tournament weapons.
After her armor was on, she sat down to pull on her boots while Enid worked on losing her buns and getting the circlet out of her hair. Lenore knew fully well that this was the Queen's doing, and she wonder what exactly her intentions had been.
The bells rang from the arena, which told Lenore that she had to arrive in the arena immediately. "Pull my hair up!" She demanded even though none of all the buns were out of her hair and the circlet was still attached.
She pulled on her helmet and found it tight due to the way her hair was pulled up. It also made it difficult to see out of, and the circlet pressed against her scalp and forehead. She rushed toward the door and turned back to Enid briefly.
"Thank you, Enid, I will remember your assistance in this matter." She told the young girl before rushing down the hallway and out into the arena.
Santh and the others look relieved as her time had been dwindling before they removed the South Dorm from the tournament completely. She ran toward the referee and her opponent, who just happened to be Krius.
The large man could see that she was still wearing a great deal of her make-up, which he knew would be a hindrance. They touched swords and the battle began. Lenore would dodge his blows and seemed to be doing rather well at first, but then reality would soon come to the fore front.
The circlet pressed against her head as if it desired to make it burst, and her hair was making the helmet unforgiving. The worst was soon to come, as her make-up began to smear from the sweat making it impossible to see.
---***---
Remus collected bets for the next battle as Ophelia walked behind him and put the money in a large velvet purse. He would write down the names and the bids as he walked along. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Lenore battle the large man.
She initially seemed strong and able to avoid any attacks, but as time went on she started to seem confused. If Krius landed a mortal blow then she would lose the battle. She didn't seem like her normal self by any means, as she was only avoiding attacks and not attempting to attack herself. It was as if she could barely make out where her opponent was.
"Remus." Ophelia placed her hand on his shoulder as they arrived back at the seating area for the South Dorm families.
It was a strange mixture of Souchan, Mondue, Commoner's, but luckily the Royals were no where near them. It was awkward enough as it stood.
"Some thing is wrong." Ophelia informed everyone. "Why is she just running around like that? I've seen her fight larger men."
Remus was sitting behind her next to his father, and he leaned forward so she could hear him over the roar of the crowd. "She seems to be having trouble with her helmet."
He sat back up and Pymus looked over at this son. "There is a worry in your eyes son, did you bet on the lass?"
A smirk came over his face and he shook his head as he talked a low as he could to his father. "The amount of make-up and the way her hair was, I knew she could never change completely in time. The eye make-up that the Royal women wear will run into their eyes when they sweat, and cause obstructed vision. I knew better than to bet on her, even if she is one I can comfortably call a friend."
Pymus patted his son's back, as he laughed.
"Oh, no!" Odelia who was sitting in front of Pymus and covering her eyes. "He's going to kill her!"
"There is no killing, mother. The swords are dull and covered with bee's wax. She will be fine. Remus thinks that her helmet is the problem. I have seen her fight with far more grace than that." As soon as Ophelia spoke those words, she covered her own eyes as Krius slapped her in the back with his dull short sword.
Even if the blade could not kill, it certainly seemed able to knock the wind from the Princess' body. She laid on the ground for several moments as the referee called the match, and then attended to her.
"Is she alright?" Odelia stood up slightly in an attempt to get a better look.
"She's stronger than she appears." Remus spoke from behind them in an effort to calm the two women down. "She'll stand up in a couple moments, just you see."
Pymus agreed with his son and looked around at the seats as everyone seemed to be holding a collective breath.
Lenore finally stood up and headed toward her dorm mates. When she arrived they all watched as her helmet was removed and thrown to the ground with as much strength as she could muster.
"Her hair still has buns." Ophelia noticed. "No wonder her helmet was bothering her. Maybe, I should go down there..." She stopped speaking when Santh began to remove the little metal flowers and the buns from her hair. "That is so sweet." Ophelia grabbed at her heart.
Odelia was also delighted to witness the moment of tenderness.
Pymus turned his attention to his son. "Well, you certainly called that one."
"Yes, I did." Remus smirked proudly even if he didn't believe that his father was speaking about the match.
---***---
Lenore stomped toward her dorm mates as she passed the Queen, she could hear the woman tell her that it was appropriate for a woman not to defeat her future husband. She ignored her as she continued on her path toward the South Dorm waiting area and found Santh approaching her. "What was that? It was like you were fighting blind out there!"
She grabbed her helmet from her head and threw it to the ground. "I was! That blasted woman knew what she was doing to me!" Lenore grabbed the circlet around her forehead and yanked at it once, but it remained attached.
The others could see a deep imprint of the flower charm on her forehead. Her eyes were completely painted black and dripping down her cheeks. As the more the make-up got into her eyes, the more her eyes teared up.
"I need to rinse my eyes out! My next match is after this one!" Lenore barked. There was a water trough near by as she bent over it to rinse off her face. Routine unfortunately found his fully armored body in her way and they had to dace left to right for a couple moments, before he was able to make his escape.
When she stood up, she was offered a cloth to dry herself before Santh made her sit down in one of the chairs. With as much gentleness he could muster, he began picking the pins and metallic flowers from her hair.
Jolon grabbed a nearby cloth, dipped it in the water trough, and rubbed a small amount of the bar soup against it. He knelt down before her and began to assist with removing the make-up that was smeared all over her face. Anton followed suite and the two worked calmly on her face, while Santh slowly pulled pins from her hair. Routine could barely lift an arm to help, so he merely leaned against the walls of arena as sitting wasn't an option at this moment.
"How many are there in here?" Santh asked with a large pile already laid at his feet. The look on his face told of astonishment for how many pins one head could hold.
"Enough to make it impossible for me to win my first battle." Lenore growled, she would have glared at the Queen had her eyes not been closed and covered with soap.
Anton looked at Jolon briefly as if he was asking if the woman before them was actually accusing the Queen of hindering her. "Do you truly believe she did this on purpose?"
Lenore snorted. "Of course, she did. That woman does nothing without purpose."
Anton began to wipe down her face with a rinsed cloth, as Jolon tried to assist Santh in removing the hair pins.
None of the group paid any attention to the next battle that was held against the Krius and the Mondue. None, but Routine who had very little to do in the matter of helping Lenore disrobe.
"One loss will not be the end of us." Santh told her in a calming voice. "There have been plenty who have finished last on any of the three days, and still won their part of the tournament."
"Yes, do not allow this to burden your other battles." Jolon joined in.
Lenore frowned, "I have no intention of allowing her to sour my outlook. I plan on winning from here on out. Actually, she may have done me a favor today, because the others will think I am not a worthy opponent and make mistakes."
The boys chuckled.
"I think you have a couple swords worth of metal in your hair, Lenore." Anton who was still knelt down in front of her told her as the pile continued to build.
Finally, her last pin was removed and Anton shoved the others out of the way. He quickly braided her hair for her and then tucked the tail underneath the braid. He used the pins at his feet to keep them in place.
"I have sisters." He informed the three men who were staring at him while he worked. "There." He stepped back as Lenore's name was called once more.
"Now, watch me gain my revenge!" Lenore barked and yanked her helmet from Routine's grasp.
---***---
Pymus sat behind the two women amused by the older woman's constant attempts to peek between her fingers. Odelia would whimper whenever the Souchan swung at Lenore, but the princess was agile enough to dodge each attack. She had done well enough in her last battle as blind as she had been, however this battle made the differences all too clear. This fact did not comfort the fretting Romanus woman as she squeaked and shivered with each attack.
"Mother, you are making me nervous." Ophelia whimpered.
Peeking through her fingers, Odelia bit her bottom lip. "I am sorry, dear. Oh no! Watch out, Lenore!" She yelled from behind her hands.
Her daughter frowned. "I have seen Lenore train for weeks now, she is very good. There was just something wrong with her last time."
Pymus looked over at his son and watched how closely the young lad was listening to and concerning himself with the women before him. Even if he said nothing to them, he was present in their conversation.
In the distance, Lenore made her fatal attack and was deemed the winner of this match. Odelia jumped to her feet immediately and began clapping with all the power she could muster. Ophelia mimicked her movements and they both cheered for the Princess.
"Lenore! You were brilliant!" Odelia yelled.
The Princess was a good distance from them, but she turned to the group when she heard her name and gave a brief wave in their direction.
"How would you know? Your eyes were covered most of the time." Ophelia playfully spoke to her mother.
A smile crossed the woman's face. "She doesn't need to know that." She sat back down as the two minute break began. "How many more will there be?"
"You attended Apisarn, mother, surely you went to the tournaments before."
Slowly, she shook her head. "No, I preferred the festivities outside the arena more."
Pymus leaned forward to bring himself into this conversation. "That was the third fight of the melee, there will be three more. Followed by archery which goes very quickly, then we have unarmed which will be another six matches."
"My word, all in one day?" Odelia placed her hand over her heart.
"There is still more." Ophelia took over the explanation. "After unarmed, there is hammer throwing and finally jousting right before the feast. They will do this for three days in a row."
Looking over her shoulder at Pymus, Odelia inhaled deeply. "I don't suppose you brought an umbrella? I simply can not be exposed to the sun for that long."
Remus reached under his sit and handed the wooden framed umbrella to her. "I brought one for all the ladies." He grabbed another and offered it out to Ophelia, who shook her head. His attention was then turned to Renata Nicoletti, who graciously accepted it. Both Lena Pugh and Edith Marsh rejected the offer, though Lena would look over from time to time as if she regretted the decision.
"Thank you, Remus." Odelia opened up the umbrella which hit Pymus in the thigh and when she lifted it up, it smacked him in the face.
Remus smiled at his father's discomfort, and Pymus gave his son a comical look as Ophelia realized what was going on.
"Mother, you are hitting him." She grabbed her mother's umbrella and pulled it downward.
Odelia looked behind her. "Beg pardon." She spoke in an light voice that told of her embarrassment.
"Turn it toward the sun, it is hitting your arms more than anything." Her daughter ordered. When her mother finally settled and the next round began, Ophelia turned her attention to Remus. "I blame you for that!" She barely whispered to him before turning back around and watching the tournament.
Remus threw his hands up and shrugged as if he had no idea what she was talking about. Pymus elbowed his son, "All done with the bets?"
"Until archery begins." He leaned back on his seat and put his hands behind his head.
---***---
The melee was over which no one but the Royal Dorm was happy about, as Lenore was in second place for the day. Though Santh kept reminding them that there were two more days and four more events to make up for the lost points. That did not comfort Anton in these moments as he waited for his own tournament to begin.
Anton found himself standing with the other three archers on an elevated platform. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, until he saw Lenore in the distance waving a handkerchief at him. She had told him many times before to use the one in his pocket and not his hands as he didn't want to get them wet.
The crowd began to settle as the arbitrator walked out into the arena grounds and made his way to the platform. All the teams except the archers had been placed to the far left of the platforms so it would be difficult for their own teams mates to see their points due to their angle.
Anton was closest to them and could hear most of what they were yelling though the crowd would soon drown them out. Next to him was the Souchan, followed by the Mondue, and finally the Prince. He had been warned for weeks now that the Prince would be his rival in this, but it wasn't until he saw the calm, collected man standing on the platform did it become a reality.
Lesatan didn't look to be worried in the least, and Anton had been informed why. Her brother was an avid hunter and archer. The Prince would have no difficulty hitting his target, but Anton knew he had to worry more about what he was doing and less about the other combatants.
The chubby, balding arbitrator stood in front of the four of them and began to speak. "Archers will fire right to left. While the others are firing, you must reload and wait your turn. If you are not ready to fire when you turn appears again, you will forfeit that turn. If you knock an arrow from your target those points will be lost. Any questions?"
There was only silence as a retort.
"Then let us begin!" The arbitrator walked up the platform to stand behind the boys. He would follow each one as they fired to ensure that nothing out of the ordinary was occurring. His other duty was to yell out the points that each shot earned. "My Prince." He gave Lesatan the command to begin the tournament.
Anton prepared his bow for his turn as he was warned these rounds were quick. The archery section was the shortest part of the tournament. Lenore had told him to think of his position as bonus points for the teams. While it took a great deal of skill, it was over faster than one could bat an eyelash.
He fired and prepared his short bow to be fired once more. Tomorrow would be long bows which he found far more difficult to hit a target with, and then finally crossbows. He kept telling himself that it was only two more times he would have to complete this task. Only two more times, he would stand on equal footing with a future king.
Once more he fired, and prepared himself. Anton barely recognized where his arrows were hitting, and the sounds of his dorm mates cheering for him were completely drowned out. He was lost in his own mind, and only found himself even reacting when he heard the Souchan next to him fire his own bow.
The last arrow was shot off and Anton lowered his bow. His eyes went immediately to his teacher, Lenore, who was clapping while the rest of his team mates looked rather pleased as well. He looked at the target to verify that he had done well.
A smile came to his lips when he noticed he had hit the center target once and the second ring twice. His eyes followed down the targets to see how his competitors had done. He scored higher than the Mondue and the Souchan. When his eyes fell upon the Prince's target, he could barely believe it. Lesatan had hit the center target once, followed by the second ring, and the arrow for his third shot sat on the line between the second and third ring.
The arbitrator was examining it to determine whether he would receive eight or six points. Anton couldn't remember what the arbitrator had said the points were when Lesatan fired the shot. It didn't truly matter to him however. He had only begun to learn archery weeks ago, and Lesatan was considered an elite amongst them. In a few moments, Anton knew that he would either be tied with or have beaten the Prince on the first day.
When he was finished he walked up to the platform and announced loudly. "I stand by my previous assessment. Six points!"
Anton half expected Lesatan to throw a fit, but he graciously bowed to the arbitrator and thanked him for his closer inspection. Lesatan exited the platform as did the rest of the competitors. The archery was over for the day.
---***---
Santh stretched himself as he prepared for his first battle of the day. Lenore stood beside him as the man from the Souchan Dorms readied himself. He was a larger Souchan, but Santh certainly out weighed him.
They had placed several posts up in the center of the arena with the dirt ground being their only flooring. Scraps and cuts during this portion of the tournaments were inevitable. Melee and jousting mostly gave bruises, but unarmed would be a great deal of skin being scrapped against the ground. Knees being fallen onto, submission holds going wrong, and there was a real threat of bones breaking.
While Lenore, Anton, and Jolon came to stand ring side to cheer on their team mate. Routine still dressed in full armor had taken to sitting on a bench while he waited for his tournament to begin. He constantly complained that he did not see why he had to be dressed for battle so early in the day. Lenore explained that sometimes they switch the tournaments around if there is a malfunction with the equipment or if he is not in full battle gear when he is called then he would be disqualified. She also told him that he needed to be out here cheering for his team, not locked away especially during the hammer throwing. Routine wanted nothing of her responses and only seemed to pout further.
"What do you think?" Santh asked Lenore.
Anton and Jolon were surprised by the amount of camaraderie the two of them had during the tournament. Normally, they ignored each other or bickered, but today it seemed like none of that matter to them.
"The Souchan and the Royal are nothing. It's the other Mondue. He is taller and heavier than you, so it might take more than one shot to finish him off." Lenore put her hand on his shoulder, causing him to look over at her. "Your one blessing is that you were in street brawls, these spoiled brats only know unarmed in it's most basic form. They are going to try to wrestle you into submission, and if they get a hold on you they just might take you to the ground. You do not have the training to break yourself out of a hold, so just one simple rule: Don't go to the ground. You can't win there."
Santh nodded in agreement and then took his shirt off, so that he was in nothing but the sanctioned shorts. Once the shirt was gone, several girls from the crowd cheered. The large man looked confused and began to survey the area for what these girls were so thrilled for.
"What is that?" He asked.
Anton chuckled. "I believe they are cheering for the simple fact that you took your shirt off."
Lenore smirked, "I know I was cheering on the inside."
"Don't start now, Lenore." He warned as he turned his back to her and gave himself a couple more stretches.
The Princess looked toward a particular raunchy collection of girls that were calling out Santh's name to him. Several of them were blowing kisses or causing other disturbances such as briefly lifting their skirts for him. Santh didn't seem to pay any attention in the slightest to them as he made his way to the ring.
Lenore never realized how popular her dorm mate actually was, though she wondered if he was aware of it himself. Apparently, she was not the only one thinking such thoughts as Santh made his way out of ear shot.
Jolon came to stand next to the Princess, "It's the dark and broody persona that gets that reaction, isn't it?"
Lenore giggled. "That man is built like a stallion, and he pays no attention to the women around him. He is absolutely desirable."
Santh stepped into the ring and bumped fists with his competitor. The thin, lanky arbitrator began to speak. "No hits to the genitals and no biting or clawing. Any questions?" When he was answered with silence, he tossed up his hands. "Begin!"
Santh pulled back his fist and punched the Souchan with all the power he could muster. The man fell to the ground immediately, and the crowd was hushed. Even the arbitrator looked shocked. Every unarmed battle was fought with a few punches, but it was mostly choke holds and getting the other person to submit.
Kneeling down, the arbitrator checked on the fallen competitor. He called for someone to assist the unconscious boy, before grabbing Santh's hand and tossing it into the air. "Winner!"
Santh was also the second fight. He remained in the ring for the two minute break as they removed the unconscious man. Armand stepped inside for the second battle having lost jousting to Authin. They bumped fists and the arbitrator offered the rules to them once more.
"Please don't hit me that hard." Armand whimpered.
"I make no promises." Santh grinned as the fight began, and Armand was immediately knocked to the ground.
Santh would go on to win all three of his fights for the day in front of a rather silent audience, though the other Mondue did need a few more hits before he was finished.
---***---
Jolon had watched how nervous his friend had been standing on the platform as he competed with the Prince. He had laughed internally at the fear and determination that Anton showed. He never once looked away from the target the entire time. When Anton left the platform, Jolon had teased the man for the fearful look that had been plastered across his face.
Now that the hammer throwing tournament was about to begin, he wished he could take it all back. The Prince's dimwitted adviser stood amongst them. He believed his name was Enoch, though he had only heard his name in passing.
The sand pit was nearly six lengths of Jolon himself. The largest area in front of them was the zero point area, the marked territories after that went in points of two and as their points increased the area grew smaller. Santh had informed him that precision was the key to the hammer throwing tournament. If you do not hit the sand pit, then you do not receive points. If you over throw the sand pit, then you do not receive points. All this was explained by the tall, broad arbitrator, but Jolon had heard it too many times before.
The crowd seemed to enjoy the hammer throwing as a few more people filtered in from the festivities when it was announced.
The Souchan was first to make his three tosses, leaving Jolon, Enoch, and the Mondue standing on the side lines. The only time their teams could be near them during the tournaments was to assist in the unarmed. The rest of the tournaments each person was on their own when it came to strategy.
"I hear you picked this up weeks ago." Enoch addressed his remarked to Jolon. "I've been doing this since the first year I arrived." He began to count on his fingers.
"Four years." Jolon informed him and the man looked at him with curiosity. "Your tabard is dark green, you are a forth year."
Enoch grinned, "Ah, yes."
The Souchan finished and the Mondue was up next. The Souchan was exhausted and went to sit down on a nearby bench.
"All three of us do this every year." Enoch explained and motioned toward himself and the other two competitors. "It will be interesting to see how you do with little training."
"I am not certain, milord, but are you attempting to intimidate me?" Jolon wasn't too sure as for the most part it seemed like rather polite conversation.
The adviser chuckled. "The tournament is intimidating enough, don't you think? My comments were more in line that Santh was the man I expected to be the challenger, but instead he sends his student. Santh did the tournament a while back and nearly got a perfect score. It will be interesting to see why he has so much faith in you."
Jolon didn't know what to say to the high powered man. It felt like he was being insulted, but then Enoch's voice carried no anger or annoyance in it. In truth, he seemed rather friendly if not just simple. He wondered if any complex thoughts passed through this man's mind.
"It will be interesting on my end as well." He finally responded.
"Ah, my turn." Enoch grabbed the hammer that his competitor handed to him and turned to Jolon with a grin. "I would ask you for good luck, but it would seem self defeating from your stand point."
He watched the tall and lanky man head toward the sand pit. Enoch stopped once to give a wave to the crowd to which some girls called out to him, and then he offered a bow to his Prince who was standing with the other groups across the arena in a safety area.
Jolon looked at the other two men who had taken to the bench. The Souchan was rubbing his shoulders with some sort of herbal lotion, while the Mondue turned his neck from side to side as if it hurt but he didn't wish to admit it. He wondered how long he could do this before he started to look as destroyed as they did.
Suddenly a hammer handle was shoved into his face. "Do your best." Enoch told him with support in his voice and then patted him on the shoulder before heading over to the bench to massage his own shoulder.
Jolon made his way over to the sand pit and took a couple deep breaths, before he began. He couldn't hear his team mates cheering for him, but he knew they would be as he had for them. He spun around and began to toss his hammer for his three consecutive tries.
---***---
Across the arena, Jolon's team mates stood slightly away from the rest of the group. Even though the other guilds had left them well enough alone, Anton and Santh felt uncomfortable standing near them. So the group moved away which seemed to relieve both the Unmentionable's Dorm and everyone else from the other dorms.
Lesatan had been the one to look most bothered and he seemed to relax as soon as his sister gave him some distance. Though Authin had tried to engage Lenore in some banter, but she was quick to move away with the rest of her group.
Routine just felt uncomfortable with the entire situation and couldn't believe he was excited that his tournament would be up next. The cloth he had under his armor was soaked with sweat from the heat and water from his greatest humiliation of the day yet. He was beginning to lose his temper and everyone was well aware, so they left him to his misery.
"I think that was a seven!" Lenore smacked Santh's bare shoulder as they watched the first toss.
Santh had yet to put on his shirt though he was covered in sweat.
Lenore looked at her wet hand and frowned. "Disgusting." She pulled the handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her hand off. "Put your shirt back on."
"I do not wish to. I am hot and sweaty, and the shirt makes me uncomfortable." Santh crossed his arms.
"We wouldn't want our delicate flower to be uncomfortable." Routine snapped as he attempted to lean against the wooden arena walls in the full armor.
Lenore grinned as did Anton, though Santh looked unamused. He felt bad enough for his team mate, but didn't understand why Routine had to take away his suffering. There were others in the armor as well, and they didn't look nearly as tormented as he did.
"When I must urinate, which despite my best efforts to avoid any liquids I still found myself a slave to nature, they place me under a contraption with a large bucket of water directly above my head." He attempted to through his hand above his head, but stopped himself when it made a large clanking noise.
Lenore shook her head but allowed him to continue as she turned back to the tournament taking place before her.
"When the lever is pulled, I am drenched in said water. This allows the urine and water to drain out of small holes in my full metal boots. Oh, did I mention that servants watch as you urinate upon yourself? Perhaps you should inquire if this torture device can be exploited to efficiently assist you in becoming more comfortable, little Prince." Routine's voice could barely hide the disdain he was feeling and normally the man needed no effort in hiding his feelings if they even existed to begin with.
"Ah, a cranky version of our dear Routine. I dare say I thought such an event could never be." Santh mocked him. "Thank you for the advice, dear friend. During the two minute break, I will inquire about this device. It sounds wonderful to a man such as myself not clad in iron and able to reach my genitals for urinating."
"Alright, you two." Lenore interrupted. "Jolon just finished his tosses, and neither of you were even paying attention."
They both looked toward the sand pit as Jolon walked away looking rather depressed. He had come in third place and had only beaten the Souchan by two points.
"He looks upset." Lenore looked to Santh. "Perhaps, you should speak to him since you are his tutor. Let him know that he has two more days to gain, this is not the end."
Santh glared down at the woman. "I know what to say. I do not need you to dictate my every action, Princess."
She sighed audibly and purposely cocked her head to the side to look exhausted. "Great, you and Byron are cranky now. Both of you need to go to bed early tonight, you big children."
---***---
The last tournament of the day was about to begin. Routine had never rushed off so quickly as when it was announced they would begin shortly. He cursed under his breath and promised to never again agree to this torture, though he spoke loud enough as he walked away that his team mates were certain to hear.
Lenore and the others took to the stadium seating with their parents and the rest of their dorm. The queen had motioned for her to come sit near them, but she bowed as politely as possible in rejection. When the older woman looked upset, the king whispered in her ear. If Lenore knew her father, she assumed he was telling her that she needed to be with her team mates in effort to support their jouster.
Taking her seat between Odelia and Santh, they watched as the arena was transformed into a jousting ring. Horses were brought in that had been waiting in the stables all day, and the fully armored knights were each given a random horse.
Jolon and Anton both sat next to their parents which also meant they were sitting next to each other. Though they were so exhausted from their day, both were glad to be sitting in the back rows as most commoners do. This way they could lean back and take brief naps without bothering the people behind them.
Renata and Vidal Nicoletti had offered the Princess a sit next to them, but Lenore had already taken her seat beside Odelia and declined. Routine's parents did not seem pleased that she had done so, but there was little they could do about it.
Though it had surprised almost everyone when Santh entered the stands and sat immediately down next to Lenore. Anton and Jolon had known they had been discussing strategies with each other all day. They would later share it with the others in effort to make their battles better for tomorrow.
"I hear the Souchan, Contreras something or other, is a very talented jouster." Lenore informed Santh.
"Broderick Contreras." Santh informed her. "He has won a few times, but he is not undefeated. I wonder how he will feel jousting against the technical future king of the Souchan, however. After all, he has been known to take a fall when the Royals are losing."
Lenore pressed her lips together. "Well, let us hope that does not occur. We wouldn't want the other students to think we had cheated or convinced someone to purposely lose."
The larger man agreed.
Odelia, Ophelia, Remus, and Pymus were all sitting close to them and listened carefully to their conversation.
They began to announce the names of the jousters, and as they did so each man mounted his stead and prepared himself.
Authin was one of the jousters and as soon as he mounted his horse, the girls cheered his name and clapped. A male servant approached him and offered him two roses to which he raised into the air as if they were swords. "These two roses shall go to the two most beautiful women in the arena today!" He shouted at the top of his lung.
"Oh no." Lenore whimpered.
He road over to the shaded box and offered one rose to the queen. "My queen, the largest and most beautiful one for you, of course."
Queen Aletta smiled at the young man and accepted his gift. "Thank you, Lord Authin."
He gave a brief bow before he road toward Lenore, though some girls in the crowd did not give up hope that it would be them and would call out his name as he road by. He came to a halt in front of Lenore, and offered out the rose. "My princess, please accept this humble gift. Be careful of thorns, however, though they have all been cut away, I suspect it may grow some out of spite, simply to prick you out of jealousy. For your beauty far surpasses it's own."
Lenore took the rose from him with as polite of a smile as she could muster. She knew better than to cause a scene in these moments. She would have to talk to Authin later about such public displays, though he did give one to the Queen. Yet, she knew why he had done so. Calling her the most beautiful and leaving out the Queen would surely earn him scorn from her highness.
She laid the rose on her lap and watched as Authin road away and the jousting begin. Odelia made a comment about how sweet the man had been, but Lenore didn't wish to speak of it.
Remus leaned over with a slight smirk on his lips. "He definitely wants to prick you, but not with any rose thorn."
Lenore turned around and smacked the merchant on his shoulder twice, as Pymus and the Romanus girls chuckled. Remus also laughed and the slightly amused Lenore turned back around. Santh was still seated next to her and he looked down at the rose briefly, but said nothing.
---***---
It took a while for Routine to be removed from his armor, and everyone from the dorm except Remus and Ophelia were too exhausted to go to the feast after the tournament. Routine found himself in last place and was the most unpleasant of the group. His body was bruised and battered from his three battles of the day, and all he wanted to do was lay down and sleep. He would have to wake early tomorrow as well in order to be placed in the uncomfortable armor.
Everyone exited to their rooms except for Lenore who went into Routine's and Anton's, where she laid down on her old bed. They left the sliding doors open so they could speak to each other clearly enough.
"We did well today. Tomorrow, we will need to try harder." Lenore told them as she laid on her stomach with her cheek pressed firmly against the pillow.
"I hope this wasn't my idea to join this tournament." Anton mumbled from the top bunk. "Otherwise, I am the dumbest man alive."
The group could barely laugh but a few chuckles were released.
"We will either grow too tired to compete, or our bodies will grow used to the demand." Santh laid on his back and stared up at the ceiling.
"You did well today, Anton." Lenore told the younger boy who had chosen to crawl down from his top bunk, and lay down on the solid ground. His back ached and the bed did not assist, when Jolon noticed him do so, he mimicked the action from his own top bunk.
"Thank you." He told them as everyone else echoed Lenore's compliment.
"Greetings, brave warriors." Remus entered into the hall with Ophelia standing beside him. "If you would be so kind as to follow us out into the court." He gave no further explanation as he and the girl turned around and immediately left.
Lenore looked at Routine, who was unamused though he stood up to see what was occurring. She followed him and Anton out, though Santh and Jolon already stood in front of the stairway.
All of their parents except the Queen and King stood in the courtyard, and they clapped for their children minus Anton's father, Nolan, who stood with his arms crossed. The court yard still had tables from that morning, and the parents had brought food from the feast or rather someone's parents had gotten some servants to deliver them.
Everyone would later guess it was either Lenore's father or Routine's parents. Lenore was certain that her father would never do such a thing, but the parents would never say who planned the little feast.
Odelia stepped forward and hugged each one of them. "You all did so well today." She told them when she finished. "You should eat to get your strength up for tomorrow."
Ophelia bounced up behind her mother. "We brought a lot of every thing. So, our brave warriors get first pick of whatever they want."
Jolon and Routine moved quickly to get themselves a meal, while Anton stared at his father who looked displeased with this entire arrangement. He couldn't tell if his father was angry with him being in the tournament or if it was about eating near this dirty dorm, either way he was worried what he might say. After a moment, he moved toward the tables to fill his own plate.
During that time, Lenore looked over at Santh who seemed unable to understand what was occurring in these moments. She grabbed his upper arm and pulled him toward the table. "Let's eat! They brought this all the way here for us. Be gracious."
The next couple of hours would be filled with laughter, as everyone retold stories of the past day. Though, Nolan remained stoned face the entire evening not even his wife could break his icy glare.