A Matter of Class

By Donna and Abby

It was a lovely early spring day at Camelot. So lovely in fact, that nobody wanted to work inside. The men took off riding, as they were accustomed to doing, and the Queen and her Ladies-in-waiting took to the upper court, while those of the lower classes congregated in the lower court with whatever work needed to be done. There, the women that worked in the kitchen, laundry, stables and other areas of the castle could sit and talk about their favorite subject. Men!

There were, of course, many men at Camelot.  Unfortunately, they mostly saw the lower class girls as someone they could "dally" with! Some were willing, of course. And some weren't. Jeannette, the daughter of the King's stablemaster, was one of them. And it was causing trouble between her and Count Vronsky!

The other girls thought she was very lucky to have one of the men paying her court!  Not everyone could catch the eye of a count or a knight!

"I heard that some of the knights have been friendly with Janet," one of the kitchen girls said, teasing the pretty dark haired seamstress, who was sewing quietly as she listened to the others chatter away.

"Easy enough tae ge' the men interested," she scoffed.  "Bu' then they wan' somethin' - don't they?"

There were nods of agreement from the other girls. "Aye," said Heather. "Isn't is funny though tha' they dunnae ask the same thing of the ladies? Yer Count, fer instance, Jeannie. Dinna I see him ridin’ off with Lady Sabina just this morn?"

She didn't answer right away.  To be perfectly honest, Vronsky was dragging his feet in some respects.  He told her that he loved her, as she looked just like the one woman he'd always loved, but at the same time, he expected her to put out!

And that was something that Jeannette was not about to do! Stableman's daughter or not, she had firm beliefs. Too often she had seen the Lords of the Castle dally with the serving girls, fill their belly with child, and then act as if they did not even exist!

It was a little strange, of course, this class thing.  Some of the serving girls were fae, and not born any higher than the ladies who were also fae! The only difference was the role they had chosen to play.

Among the men of the castle, class seemed more important to some than others. As the women worked and gossiped with each other, a small riding party returned and dismounted. In it were two of the knights, Sir Gawain and Sir Patrise. Both of them had *noticed* Janet, but now, with Lady Keitha on his arm, Sir Gawain walked right past her as if she wasn't even there! Sir Patrise, on the other hand, smiled and paused to say hello, much to the amusement of all the others.

He was a good man, and very quiet and polite, so Janet smiled up at him.  "It is a fine day, is it not?" he asked.

"Aye, M'Lord," she said, her cheeks high colored as she tried to ignore the soft chuckles of her friends. "Wa' it a bonnie ride?"

"It was enjoyable, yes. You might have enjoyed it."  His own cheeks colored as he thought how *he* might have enjoyed it better, had she come.

At the side entrance to the main castle, Gawain paused and called out Patrise's name. The Knight sighed. "I must go now," he said. "Have a nice day, all of you."

The girls just giggled.  But some were annoyed at Gawain for his attitude.  "He's a spoilt one," said Heather with a harrumph.

"Aye," most agreed. Even shy Souris added her soft voice to that of the others.  Since coming to Camelot, the tiny fae girl had fallen deeply in love with the lad they all called The Mouse. He, of course, was on her level, class-wise, so there was absolutely no stress.

Nor did there seem to be any between Faline and Captain Navarre, even though she insisted on continuing to work in the stables alongside of her close friend, Jeannette. In fact, there were whispers that there might be a wedding in the near future for the two lovers, and if so, that would free Mouse to take Souris for his own wife. Of course, everyone was thrilled for the two fae.  If anything, the only fae who was not bridging class gaps was Heather!

There was some more clattering of hooves as another group of riders returned. This time, it was the one with the Count. Faline watched Jeannette's jaw tighten as Vronsky lifted Lady Sabina off her mount, a pleased smile on his face. 

Her eyes filled with tears.  "Do you know," she said a bit loudly, "I do think I will take that stallion down to Edan myself!"

"The one that Duncan MacLeod bought from the King?" asked Faline.

Jeannette nodded. "They appreciate good breeding stock there!" she snorted.

There were other nods of the heads as the others silently sympathized with the hurting stable girl. Gathering up the bridle she had been cleaning, Jeannette stood and then left hurriedly, not wanting the others to see the tears that were threatening to roll down her cheek.