"Why do you condemn them so?" asked Lady Natasha.
You invited her to your study to converse before dinner. You were tired of being around men for the last few days, so you sent for her. You normally would have talked to Eamon, as he was your best friend, but you were going to see him later and he was a man. You wanted to talk with another woman for once, and she proved to be good company during the last dinner.
You were confiding in her about the dates you were on and what you thought of each of them. So far you were only complaining. Which again, you normally wouldn't do, but it was all so stressful.
You told her of Loki being prone to being materialistic, Pietro's kiss, Anthony's want to please you, Erik's ambition, James' kindness, Brock's aggressiveness, your distracted mind at Samuel's date, and finally your infatuation with Steven. You did not tell her about Brock's threat.
"I know nobody's perfect. But if I am to wed one of them, I need to judge them accordingly. Now is the time to do that, since there's so little of it."
"I understand. May I give my advice, your Highness?"
"I feel we can be friendly, you may call me y/n. And yes, you may."
"Of course, y/n. When I was courting Lord Bruce Banner, I was quick to judge as well. Even during consummation I had my doubts. But over time, I got to know him and learned that he was nothing like the man I thought he was."
"What happened to him? He's not here with you."
"He's a scientist, as you know, and he was working on one of his experiments when it went terribly wrong."
You nodded in sympathy. "So you're a widow?"
She hummed in response. "Point is, men are hard to understand. You have to give them a chance to open up."
"I think I am getting your point. I truly am keeping an open mind, Natasha. But with so little time... I'm just trying to get an accurate impression of each of them. It's tiring."
"I don't think any of us have any idea how exhausting men can be until they start courting us." You chuckled at that. "Well, some will go home tomorrow. That leaves less for you to worry about," she tried lifting your spirits.
"Yes, and the impending wedding gets closer as well." Natasha sighed at your words. "I apologize, I don't mean to contradict most things you say."
"It's alright. You're under a lot of stress."
"Thank you so much for listening, Natasha. I appreciate your advice as well."
"Of course."
You put a smile on your face. "Now, we have a dinner to attend."
You and Natasha entered the dining room together, where all the competitors were waiting. She took her seat and you moved to stand at the head of the table.
"Good evening, everyone. I will keep this as short as possible, I'm sure you all desire to eat." There were a few nods and murmurs of agreement at that. "The second game is a joust. It shall take place tomorrow, midday. Different from the first game, half of you will go home. For those thinking it, no, you may not use your own materials other than your personal garniture. This includes lances, riding gear, and even horses. The horses in my royal stables shall do just fine."
Steven looked down at that, and you felt bad. You knew how much his horse meant to him because of that first conversation you had. But him using his horse would have offered him an advantage.
"There will only be one ultimate winner. Good luck tomorrow, dinner may commence."
Pietro sent you a smirk as you sat down, reminding you of the kiss you shared. You were never going to admit that it was your first one, ever. At least not to him.
It was easier for you to eat this time around, perhaps because you knew everyone better. You once again conversed with the Ladies to avoid the questions that the volunteers were no doubt pining to ask.
Brock was staring at you again, but you elected to ignore his looks and enjoy your food and your delightful conversation with Wanda you were having about a trade deal that was made a few years ago.
When dinner was over, you wished everyone a goodnight and went to your chambers to sleep.
~~~~~~~
Most likely dozens of servants and guards helped set up the joust. It was the same area and set-up as the archery game, but instead of targets in the middle there was a long fence that was horizontal to you and the council; the tilt.
Each competitor was given a horse of the same breed, size, and training level. They were given around thirty minutes to get used to their equipment and horses before the game started. Dressed in your kingdom's colors, you and Eamon watched them trot and canter around the grounds.
"Who do you think will return to their kingdoms today, Eamon?"
He hummed. "All of the knights have a bit of an upper hand of course, but Prince Brock and Prince Erik have a promising technique from what I've seen so far."
You tilted your head back to face him, his chestnut curls resting on his forehead and he leaned down. "You would know."
He smiled and said, "I do spend some of my time watching the knights joust when I have no pressing duties to attend to."
Natasha, Shuri, and Wanda were not a part of the Ladies Court. The Ladies Court was given the power to give extra points to any competitor that showed extra ability or gallantry during the game. In all fairness, they had to be excluded due to favoritism.
They score points by either breaking their lance or landing the best hits. Automatic wins come from knocking their opponent off their horse completely.
The first men who were to compete were Loki and James. Eamon told you that James was at more of a skill level being a knight, but since Loki wasn't the direct heir to Asgard, he might have practiced more than the usual prince.
Loki's garniture was green and gold accented, and James' had blue and red accents. Loki's lance was painted gold and James' silver, but both were made of the same materials. A rare metal that Wakanda had an abundance of; vibranium.
Since everyone knew the rules of jousting, all you had to do was announce the start of the game.
You stood and walked to the end of your platform and simply yelled, "Let the second game begin!" and the whistle blew to signal the start of the joust.
Already lined up with the tilt, both Loki and James immediately had their horses sprint towards each other, their lances in the air.
It all happened so quickly, but James' lance clinked against Loki's chest plate. He didn't fall, but it sounded like it hurt. They'd have to do a second round.
They lined up on opposite sides of the tilt, scrutinizing and analyzing each other before the whistle blows. Once it did, the horses charged and there was a fateful crack of metal hitting metal. You wouldn't have been able to tell who hit who if not for the green and gold accented garniture landing on the ground.
A few servants rushed to see if Loki was okay, but the majority of the crowd started to cheer for the champion of this joust. You sat up in your seat to see if he was hurt.
You glanced over to the council, who were smiling and clapping at the man's misfortune. You never liked jousts, nor any other game like it. You found them violent. But you didn't get to choose which games to play, you were simply the one who got affected by them.
Samuel and Brock were next, and Eamon whispered in your ear that they were about equal in skill. You were secretly rooting for Samuel when the whistle blew, hoping to be rid of Brock's words that were looming over your head since yesterday.
"You do realize that if I take your virtue right now, you'd be ruined. You'd have no choice but to marry me because no other man would want you."
A shiver ran down your spine as you heard the clanking of lances. Sam was hit in his shoulder, but not hurt badly enough to quit. That scored Brock a few points, both for the game and with the Ladies Court. It made you start to worry.
The next two rounds determined who won; Brock. Sam never fell, but he was hit enough times to know he lost the game and had to return to York. That familiar feeling of dread filled you as Brock pumped his fist in the air and rode his horse around the tilt in victory, the crowd cheering.
You made eye contact with Pietro as he mounted his horse, clad in light blue garniture. He smiled in your direction before putting down his helmet and making sure his lance was secure.
He was going up against Erik. Once again biased, you wished for Pietro to win this game. He showed you he cared that time in the meadow.
You knew you cared for him as well. Not in the romantic way, at least not yet. You spent a lot of time together when the Sokovians were here, and you had an amazing friendship and alliance, but you didn't love him as he did you.
On the other hand, you would rather marry a friend than a stranger.
The whistle sounded, and you held your breath as you watched the two horses run along the tilt.
With a sickening crash, Pietro hit his stomach on the wood of the tilt before he fell to the ground. While the crowd cheered, you had to hold back the want to run to him and see if he was alright.
Eamon put his hand on your shoulder to comfort you as you continued to watch. You held in your tears as Pietro was being checked for injuries.
Pietro soon got up and left the grounds without another look at you, and you knew you wouldn't see him for a long time. The Tournament would continue and you would have to move on.
The last pair would be Anthony and Steven. This would be the first time that twio competitors from the same kingdom were going against each other, so this last game held a lot of anticipation and tension within the crowd.
Gold and red against red and blue. Prince against knight, both of York.
Steven's horse whinnied when the whistle sounded, and both of the horses charged forward. You watched the two of them clash, the sound echoing several times before there was almost total silence, other than the sound of hooves beating on the ground.
There was no competition; Steven won this game with a strong blow to his Prince's chest, knocking him off his horse.
After a moment, the crowd begun to cheer like it had for the rest of the games. You were breathing heavily as the servants rushed out again, making sure Anthony was fine.
You had no ending speech to give since the losers went home immediately and the winners retired to their chambers after returning their horses to the royal stables.
The crowd filed out, as did the council. You stayed sitting, processing what just happened. Pietro was gone. So were Loki and Anthony.
Steven most definitely won this game all around, and therefore would get to spend the entire day with you. The other competitors were going to share a day.
"Y/n? Are you okay?"
You snapped out of your daze, looking up to find Eamon right in front of you.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
"You were just staring at the grounds for a few minutes. I asked if you were okay."
"Oh, yes. I'm okay. I just... I'm taking it in."
"Right. The Prince of Sokovia was your friend, correct?"
You paused before answering, "Yes."
Eamon sighed, and gestured for you to stand up. You did, and he wrapped his arms around you.
"I know all this is hard, but you're doing your duty to your kingdom. Whoever wins this Tournament is the strongest, and therefore the best suitor for you. He'll be able to take care of you and protect you."
You laid your head on his chest, finding comfort in your friend's embrace. "Your reassurance means a lot to me, Eamon. Thank you."
He stepped back and smiled. "You are to be the queen of Evradia, y/n, and I live to serve you. But I am also your friend and I care for you. Your happiness is my priority."
Your heart warmed and your worries faded. "I care for you as well, Eamon. You have been there for me for years and yet you are still by my side."
"I'm flattered, Princess."
"And I'm lucky to have you."
~~~~~~~
I have secured my tickets to see Spider-Man No Way Home a few days ago. I'm going on December 16th, opening night!
The first few episodes of Hawkeye were amazing.