| Chapter 2 |
| Prince Lance sat in between his parents, his cheek resting on his fist and eyes drooping slightly as he watched the latest performer sent in to entertain them. The guy was playing a little wooden flute while balancing a stick on his forehead. The stick wobbled and he would run, head tipped back, trying to keep it from hitting the ground. Lance winced as he hit a sour note. He looked at his dad and shook his head. King James sighed and raised his hand, motioning for the man to stop playing. "That'll be enough," he said, his voice booming throughout the room. "You may go now." A guard nodded, taking the man by the arm and showing him to the door. Lance was about to excuse himself when he heard a whistle. He turned back to the floor, seeing a man a few years older than himself looking around. He had short black hair, shining brown eyes, and a goatee, the bottoms of it turned into little devil horns. He wore a jester hat and pointy shoes with bells on them. His mouth was open as he surveyed the room, taking in the golden statues and large buffet tables covered with delicious foods. "Damn," he whispered, "this is some shindig." Lance grinned while King James just look annoyed. He cleared his throat loudly, which got the man's attention. "What have you come to show us today?" The man grinned and bowed. "The name's Chris Kirkpatrick, your majesty. The jolly jester of Jokeland! The witty wooer of Wackyworld! The fabulously fantastic funny man of..." "That's quite enough Mr. Kirkpatrick," said King James. "Continue on with your show." Chris looked annoyed, but he complied. "Yes, your high and mightiness," he grumbled, digging through his bag of tricks. "Geez, what royal bug crawled up your ass?" "WHAT!?" King James overheard Chris's comment and was furious, while Lance was in stitches laughing. "Guards! Take this man away!" Chris's eyes were wide with fear as two large men grabbed him by the arms. "Wait!" Lance said, standing up. "Release him." The guards did as they were told and Chris looked surprised, but grateful. King James was furious. "What is the meaning of this Lance?" he bellowed. "You wish to reward this man for speaking to me the way he did?" Lance winked at Chris. Chris grinned and stood up straight, sticking his tongue out at the guards. Lance turned to his father with a serious face. "Not at all father," he said. "I merely wish to escort this man out myself and let him know just how much we do *not* tolerate disobedience here." King James opened his mouth to protest, but Queen Diane put a hand on his arm to stop him. "You may go Lance," she said, "and take your jester friend with you." Lance grinned at his Mom and kissed her cheek. "Thanks Mom," he said. He hopped down from the throne and took Chris, who was doing karate moves on the guard, out of the castle. "What was the *meaning* of that, woman?" asked King James, looking at his wife with an incredulous look. Queen Diane rolled her eyes. "He is our son, James," she said, her voice annoyed. "And in case you have failed to notice, he is miserable. He needs a friend right now." King James nodded, knowing that his wife was right. ~*~ Lance dismissed the guards once they were outside, and turned to Chris. "And don't come back!" Chris yelled, shaking his fist at the guards' back. He grinned and dusted himself off. "I guess I showed them," he huffed proudly. He looked up at Lance and slapped him on the back. "Thanks kid, you saved my ass!" Lance smiled. "No problem." "So, uh, why'd you do it?" asked Chris, scratching his head. "Your dad, the *KING*, looked pretty pissed in there." Lance shrugged. "Maybe Dad doesn't like you, but I do," he said. "You're pretty funny." Chris puffed up his chest. "Well, I try." He sighed and picked up his bag. "I better hit the road now. Gotta look for a new job." Lance grabbed his arm, forcing Chris to look back at him. "What if I can get you a job?" he asked. Chris looked shocked. "You'd do that for me?" he asked. Lance smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I would. You seem like a nice guy..." "Chris." Lance nodded. "I like you, Chris," he said. "The people around here are so stuffy and boring. You seem like you'd make a good friend. Unless, you don't want to be my friend. That's okay, I'll just..." "Woah, kid," Chris laughed, "slow down. First off, I'll take that job if you're still offering it. I need the money. Besides, I could use a friend myself." Lance grinned at Chris. "Okay," he said, "come with me. I need to change and then we can go to town. I know the perfect job for you, at Fatone's Bakery." |