The Alyta Trilogy: Handmaids, Heroes, and Hierarchy.

�Hey, take it easy!� the attacker says.  Wait!  Huh?  She stops and rubs her eyes.
�Jason!  What are you doing here?�
�Well, it�s sort of my castle and stuff.  But I wasn�t expecting to have to defend myself like that.  I�ve seen what you can do to your opponents and don�t really want to experience it personally.�
�Yeah, well� so it�s your castle I see?  And I was feeling guilty for almost letting you buy me that necklace.�
�Hey, it�s not like I had a choice.  You were the one who started lecturing me about how this kingdom should be run and that the monarchy system is so horrible.�
Alyta smiles.  �I guess that kind of limited your chances to break in and say, �oh, by the way, I�m the Prince of Corinth.��
�I�ll be King by tonight.�
�Yeah, I�m really sorry.  I heard about what happened to your dad.�
�Yeah.�  Jason looks down at the floor.  Alyta hadn�t wanted to remind him of anything painful.
�I didn�t actually know that I was about to beat you to a pulp.  I was just practising for if somebody came along who� well, deserved to be beaten to a pulp.�
Jason looks up and smiles at her.  She smiles back.  He offers her his arm.  She converts her weapon back to a simple staff and accepts his arm. 
�Princess, may I humbly offer you a tour of this castle?�  Jason asks.
�Oh, your highness, I would have to accept that offer and hope I don�t just faint on the way!� Alyta says in a very princess-like tone, and lets herself be lead through the halls. 

                                                                  *~*~*

�� And then, he came to Alyta.  I mean, you could just see that he recognized her and stuff.  He was like �Alyta?� and she looked up, and her eyes were so big!  It was hilarious,� Iolaus explains to a table consisting of himself, Hercules, Loua, and Sytifa.
�� So this is the royal dining room�� Jason spots the four, �� which usually isn�t filled with schemers.�
�Hey, we haven�t even seen you in order to tell you anything, Jase.  We partook in little or no scheming at all.� Hercules says in self defense.
�Yeah, sorry, Jason.  This one was all your fault.� Iolaus says.  He loves it when he�s not wrong.  �But your face�� he trails off, laughing.  The rest join in his laughter.  They make a strange group: handmaids, heroes, and royals.

End of Part One of

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