Till Death Do Us Part

Chapter 2

Jean stood in front of the mirror with horror written all over her face. The dress was as embarrassing as she'd thought it would be on her. Oh her damn brother. She'd kill him.

It was a long white dress with frilled skirt. The fabric was so thin and flimsy she felt naked wearing it. That bastard Leroy is going to pay for this.

She'd skipped putting on the terrifying looking corset and settled with her regular undergarments, but the model of the dress made her chest binder visible. She was at loss on whether it was worse to let people see her binder or going out with her breasts roaming free. The cook had left and she had no one to help her tie the strings. Jean fought hard with the urge to run her sword through her dress.

It's not that  I hate dresses, she thought. I hate this one in particular. It's not my style. This is Leroy's fetish, all frills and laces. She would have complied had it been a more sensible dress.

"Ah, fuck it," she said finally, tossing the dress aside. She took the folded tunic lying on the bed and hastened to put it on. Next was her riding trousers. She tied her hair in a simple knot and wore her boots.

She would just have to avoid Leroy for the whole night. Nothing new I guess, she grinned at the face full of mischief on the mirror. 

***

Leroy was on the brink of losing his mind. He felt that he was too young to be dealing with all this on his own. Standing in the middle of the banquet hall, he watched nervously as the servants hung the drapery on the windows and brought the long tables in.

"Grandfather, what do I do?" he muttered to himself unconsciously. He had done it out of habit. His grandfather used to stand right beside him, and Leroy often would exclaim out of weariness when things get out of control to the old man. 

It had been six months since his death, yet Leroy was still unaccustomed of running the Watchtower all by himself, acting as Deputy Commander while waiting for the King to assign a new and more qualified commander. Leroy felt that he was too young and inexperienced for the title. He had lived his whole life there. The only outside world he'd seen were from the expeditions and occasional patrols on the border. There were knights older than him, who'd had more share of battle that he felt were more entitled to the position, yet the King's immediate decree was to appoint him as the Deputy Commander. To him, it was more of a burden than an honor, yet he felt like he betrayed his grandfather's legacy by feeling that way. 

He was not confident enough in carrying out his duties, especially having to command over men old enough to be his father. According to Darius, his second-in-command, he was doing incredibly well. The knights listened to him. There had been no problem with the border. They faced no military aggression nor acts of resistance in the past six months. The Watchtower was prospering. In fact, everything in the North was under control, except for his little sister perhaps.

Jean. That brat.

Leroy couldn't stop his face from breaking into a grin. He wondered what to do with her as well in the past six months. With his grandfather on his side, Jean's unusual circumstances seemed acceptable, almost even normal. But now that the late Commander had gone, Leroy found himself becoming worried with his sister's future. 

What if the new Commander makes a problem out of it? Will Jean be able to stay in Watchtower? For how long? What is to become of her when he gets stationed somewhere else? Should he leave her here in the North?

Darius' name popped up in his head again. Yes, Darius was crazy about her. Maybe something good would come out of it, though he was worried his sister's stubbornness, along with thick-headedness would complicate things. But she liked Darius, right?

Focus Leroy! He could almost hear his grandfather's voice in his ears. 

Yes, the new Commander. That's what he should be thinking about. He should be seeing the preparations for the welcoming banquet, and the vow renewal ceremony tomorrow. And the reorganization of the Watchtower. More important things.

He didn't know who this new Commander was. Rei Blackwell. All Leroy knew was that the new Commander had been the Head of The King's Guard for three years prior to his appointment as the Commander of The Watchtower. He must be exceptional, since King's Guard was the most elite force in the kingdom. Leroy found it funny that he was to be such man's Vice Commander. He felt that the disparity between their experience couldn't be stark.

"Logan," Leroy called out to the Head Servant. "I leave things in your hand, I need to check on the men."

The old man of fifty nodded from across the hall. He was preoccupied with the arrangement of seats. Logan had been the late Commander's Head Servant, and then he pledged his service to the Commander's grandson after the Commander's death. Leroy was young, but he was just as intelligent and wise as his grandfather, so Logan found a liking for the young man.

Leroy walked out of the banquet hall and headed to the annex. He needed to brief the knights on duty tonight. There must be no mistake on this ceremonious day. They had better make a good first impression on the new Commander.