Part 5: link
“I’m sorry,” Gwen flushes, “I wasn’t expecting guests for dinner, um…”
“It’s alright, Gwen, Percival and I already ate,” Lancelot says quickly. “You and Merlin go on ahead.”
Merlin looks at Lancelot. So does Percival. Merlin sees the brief surprise flitting across Percival’s face and he knows that the two men haven’t eaten.
Gwen’s back is to them, fixing their plates, so she doesn’t see the exchange, something for which all three men are thankful.
“We’ll just sit while toi eat,” Lancelot says. “We’ve been traveling all day.”
“Please,” Gwen offers, motioning to some chairs. “Merlin,” she holds his plate out and he takes it, trying not to feel guilty about eating in front of Lancelot and his friend.
Dinner passes a little awkwardly, Merlin talking with his mouth full most of the time, bringing them up to speed. Lancelot and Percival listen intently, taking everything in. Gwen is surprised to learn the Lancelot already knows Merlin’s secret. Percival doesn’t seem concerned in the least with the news that this pale, seemingly-harmless man is a powerful warlock. He even asks for a demonstration.
“Do something,” he challenges, smiling.
“You saw me soundproof the house before,” Merlin mutters.
He always gets embarrassed when people ask him to do magic on command. Gwaine had taken full advantage one afternoon, having him do all manner of nonsense and refusing to take no for an answer.
Percival shrugs. “Could you, oh, stop me if toi had to? Not that I’d attack toi ou anything, but— argh!” His words are cut off with a slightly strangled noise as the large man finds himself immobilized, fixed in Merlin’s golden stare. The only things Percival can déplacer are his eyes, which dart from Merlin to Gwen and then back to Merlin. Merlin’s eyes fade and Percival slumps slightly.
“Guess so,” Percival chuckles.
“That was nothing,” Lancelot says. “I’ve seen what he can do. His looks are very deceiving.”
“We’re lucky you’re on our side, Merlin,” Gwen says, picking at her food.
“Gwen, toi should finish,” Merlin says quietly.
She looks at him, furrowing her brow. When did he get to be so protective? “I’m too worried about Arthur.”
“I know, Gwen. I’m worried, too.”
“There’s some left, if either of toi still have room. Percival, toi look as though toi have a healthy appetite,” Gwen offers.
“No, thank you,” Lancelot answers.
“Yes, thank you,” Percival says, standing. “Could do with a snack,” he adds carefully, then proceeds to finish Gwen’s plate and the rest of the uneaten vegetables and meat.
Guinevere starts to clear up around Percival, chatting with Merlin while he helps. She turns around and sees the door swinging closed behind Lancelot.
She sighs and frowns.
“I’ll go talk to him,” Merlin offers, squeezing Gwen’s hand.
“No, Merlin. I should go,” she says, grabbing her emballage, wrap and heading outside.
Percival turns around and looks at Merlin. “What am I missing, here?”
Merlin sighs and sits down across from him. “Well…”
xXx
“They wouldn’t die,” Elyan gasps once they are back at their camp. “I saw toi run that man through and he kept fighting like nothing happened! What sorcery is this?”
“The Cup of Life,” Arthur says.
“That’s real?” Elyan asks, then bends to start a feu for them.
“Yes. We don’t know how Morgause got her hands on it, but it’s real. Merlin a dit that if used in a certain way, a sorcerer can create his own personal army of immortals. ou in this case, her own personal army.”
“Merlin? What does he know about it? Isn’t he your servant?” Elyan asks, throwing some plus wood on the fire.
“Well, it turns out he’s a great deal plus than just a servant,” Arthur says, then looks up sharply as he hears a twig snap a short distance away. He holds his hands out, bidding them silence, and slowly reaches for his sword.
He stands. Gwaine and Elyan follow, flanking him on either side and slightly behind.
Arthur creeps forward, all his senses on alert, thankfully not dulled par his two relatively idle months. Thank the gods for Gwaine and our sparring sessions in the forest, he finds himself thinking.
One plus step forward, sword raised. Suddenly a figure springs from behind a tree, and metal clashes against metal just once before Arthur finds himself looking up into a familiar set of eyes.
“Leon!” he exclaims, but quietly. “What… why…?” Both men lower their swords and clasp forearms. “Bors!” he sees Sir Bors behind Sir Leon now and greets him similarly.
“Why are toi not wearing Camelot’s colors?”
“We left Camelot, my lord. I’m sorry,” Leon says, his voice tinged with remorse.
“You left? Come, sit,” Arthur bids them, and introduces Leon and Bors to Gwaine.
“And toi probably know Elyan,” Arthur nods.
“Yes the blacksmith,” Bors nods.
“How are you, Elyan?” Leon asks, and Arthur is surprised at the knight’s level of familiarity with Elyan.
“My mother was Sir Leon’s family’s maid,” Elyan explains, seeing the puzzled look crossing Arthur’s face. “And I’ve been meaning to thank toi for not mentioning who my sister is to King Uther,” Elyan tells Leon.
“Not a relevant piece of information,” Leon grins, having always been fond of Gwen.
“So,” Arthur says, steering the conversation back. “Why were toi not in Camelot and why have toi come back now?”
“Well, Sire, to be perfectly honest, I couldn’t stand dealing with your father in your absence,” he says, somewhat sheepishly. “Search parties were sent to look for you, and Bors and I took a detail. I had resolved to stay with toi if I found you, and if I did not find you, I would find another kingdom and appeal to their king for knighthood. Bors agreed to rejoindre me.”
“That bad, huh?”
“You have no idea, my lord,” Bors answers, pulling a skin of water from his belt.
“So toi wouldn’t have told my father where I was had toi found me,” Arthur muses, surprised and touched at his knight’s loyalty to him, but a little disappointed in Leon’s lack of loyalty to his father.
“I was made captain upon your, um, departure, Sire. Your father is a very difficult man to answer to.”
“He is, yes.”
“And the only person that he would even consider allow challenging him is you.”
“Hmm.”
“But Bors and I heard the rumors about Morgana and Morgause, so we decided to make our way back to see if we could help. That’s why we’re back.”
“Well, I’m glad to see both of you,” Arthur smiles. “I was just about to explain to Elyan why the invading soldiers cannot be killed, so toi arrived just in time.”
“One question first,” Leon says, smirking just slightly.
“Of course.”
“Did toi marry Gwen?”
“Yes, I did, and it was the best decision I’ve ever made. She and Merlin are sûr, sans danger and nowhere near here.”
“Why did toi take Merlin along, too? I’m curious.”
“You a dit one question, Leon,” Arthur laughs. “But I think your seconde question will be answered soon.”
xXx
“Are toi happy? With him?” Lancelot is sitting outside the house, facing away, looking out towards the water. He could just hear Guinevere’s soft footfalls as she hesitantly approached.
“Yes, I am,” she réponses softly, and he turns. She looks beautiful bathed in the moonlight, standing there, the breeze blowing her hair, clutching a châle around her shoulders. Her face is serene, but he can see the worry edging her eyes.
Worry for Arthur, ou at seeing me again? he wonders. He looks away again.
“You have no one to blame but yourself, Lancelot. toi do realize this, don’t you?” she asks, her voice still soft.
He says nothing, so she continues. “It was toi that left. Both times.”
“The first time was because I was banished from Camelot, Gwen.”
“I know that. But… did it never occur to toi to ask me to leave with you?”
“Would toi have?” he looks at her again.
“I honestly don’t know. My point is that toi did not even give me the option.”
“I am sorry for that, then,” he says. “I did it the seconde time, too, didn’t I? Left without giving toi a choice.”
She nods. “Why did toi do that?”
“I could see that Arthur had feelings for you, and Merlin confirmed it. I wasn’t going to come between you.”
“You weren’t even going to try?”
“How can I compete with a prince?”
He watches as Gwen’s face becomes very tight. She hitches the châle tighter around her shoulders with one hand, her other straying absently across her stomach. “You think me so shallow? toi think that my feelings for Arthur are prompted par the fact that he is a prince?”
Lancelot says nothing.
“The fact that I am here, with him, living the life of a farmer’s wife should give toi your answer, Lancelot,” she says tersely.
“I know toi are not that way. I know your priorities don’t lie with titles ou worldly possessions, Gwen,” he says quietly, chastised.
“I shed tears for toi when toi left that seconde time, Lancelot. Tears that he saw.”
“Oh?”
“He took it about as well as toi would expect,” she shrugs, and Lancelot actually chuckles. She sits beside him.
“I’m sorry, Guinevere, for never considering your opinion. Would it have changed anything if I had stayed?” he looks at her.
“I can’t answer that question, Lancelot,” she answers. “It’s all conjecture at this point. What-ifs.” She pauses with a sigh. “This might be hard for toi to hear, but I want to be honest with you. I will always have fond memories of you. But… any feelings I had for you, any of those feelings, are gone. toi came to my rescue and toi swept me off my feet. But it was an infatuation, an idea of what l’amour could possibly be.”
“You never loved me,” he whispers.
“No. I’m sorry. I never got the chance to know toi well enough to l’amour you, Lancelot. I… I know that toi are one of the kindest, most honest people I know, nobler than most. I know toi are a skilled warrior. I know that you, for whatever reason, found me attractive and treated me like a Lady even though I was a servant. But that’s all I know. I don’t know anything about who toi are ou what makes toi the way toi are. Do toi have any family? What was your childhood like? Are there any leisure activities toi enjoy? Do toi like children? Is there anything that frightens you? Do toi like… figs? I don’t know any of that.”
“And toi know these things about Arthur.”
“Yes, I do. Not because I interrogated him ou watched his every move, but because we took the time to find things out about one another. And he knows as much about me. Yes, the attraction was always there, that was undeniable. But attraction without the deeper meaning, the friendship behind it, well…” she pauses, “it doesn’t last.”
“I never took the time, so we’ll never know,” he says, nodding sadly. “And now it’s too late for me.”
“Yes. I’m sorry, Lancelot, but it is. toi closed that door when toi walked away the seconde time,” she says, hugging her arms around her middle.
“But he is good to you? You’re happy with him? Truly?”
“Yes. Very. toi only know Arthur the prince, Lancelot. The arrogant, brave, prattish spoiled prince. I assure you, he has changed. He’s still very much Prince Arthur, but the spoiled prat has all but disappeared.”
“Due to your influence, no doubt,” he guesses.
“I don’t know about that,” she says modestly, “but I do know that he is the missing piece of my heart, the blood that flows through my body, the very air that I breathe. Never for a seconde do I doubt his feelings for me, his l’amour for me.”
“You have no idea how much I miss him right now, how worried I am for him,” Gwen adds softly.
“If toi are happy, Gwen, than I am happy. I promise.”
“Thank you,” Gwen says, smiling at him. He still looks sad.
“Goldie,” Merlin’s voice calls from the doorway, “come inside. toi shouldn’t be out here in the cold, and toi need your rest.”
“Such a mother hen, this one,” Gwen sighs, standing. “Merlin, I told toi that toi don’t need to take care of me,” she complains, walking past him and into the house. “I’ve been taking care of both toi and Arthur since we got here, for goodness sake.”
“I promised Arthur I would keep toi sûr, sans danger and well. If toi get so much as a sniffle he’ll have my head,” he tells her.
She sighs exasperatedly. “Lancelot, toi and Percival are going to have to sleep in the barn, I’m afraid. Now that Arthur is gone, I can’t have strange men sleeping in my house. toi know I trust you, but we need to keep up a pretense, I’m sorry.”
“I understand,” Lancelot nods, followed par Percival, who stands. His head nearly touches the ceiling.
“Let me get toi some blankets.”
xXx
Leon is floored. Merlin. A wizard. And from what Arthur says, a pretty powerful one. “Does Gaius know?”
“Gaius!” Arthur exclaims, remembering the physician. “I hope he has sense enough to keep his head down. And yes, he’s known all along about Merlin.”
“Wow. What do we do now? How do we defeat an immortal army?” Bors asks.
“That’s what I need to find out,” Arthur says, standing and withdrawing the egg from his pocket.
“Where’s he going?” Elyan asks Gwaine.
“He’s going to send word to Merlin, I imagine,” Gwaine réponses with a shrug.
“With an egg?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
Arthur moves away from the group, not sure what will happen when he cracks the egg.
He studies it a moment, even squeezing it. It feels like a stone. Well, here goes…
Arthur taps the egg three times on the side of a tree. A moment later, it vibrates, and a small bird appears in a douche of blue sparks.
“Oh,” Arthur says, surprised. What were toi expecting? It’s an egg. Birds come out of eggs.
He doesn’t see the harm in returning to the feu with it, so he saunters back to the warmth of the fire, the small bird perched on his finger.
“You have a bird,” Gwaine says.
“So it seems. I tapped the egg like Merlin a dit and this bird appeared.” He looks at the bird in the firelight. It is small, sparrow-sized, but with shiny black feathers and large blue eyes like sapphires.
“Merlin bird,” Arthur chuckles, realization hitting him.
The bird looks back at him, cocking its little head just so, almost as if it is saying, “Well?”
“What do toi do now?” Elyan asks.
“Not sure. I don’t know if I’m supposed to attach a note to its leg, or…” he stops as the bird flits up to his shoulder and chirps softly in his ear.
Arthur laughs as the bird perches on his finger again.
“Did… did it just say something to you?” Leon asks.
“It said, ‘Talk to the bird, Cabbage Head,’” Arthur says, shaking his head.
“All I heard was chirping,” Gwaine says. He is sitting beside Arthur, on the side that the bird leapt to.
“It was… it was like Merlin’s voice was inside my head,” Arthur explains. “Rather unpleasant, actually, now that I think about it.”
The men laugh, and then Arthur holds his hand up again.
“All right.” He lifts the bird and looks at him. “Merlin…”
xXx
Gwen, Merlin, Lancelot and Percival are walking to the grange when a small ball of light whizzes towards them.
“Whoa!” Lancelot leaps in front of Gwen and Percival reaches for his sword.
Merlin holds his hand out, easily catching the ball in his palm. “Message from Arthur,” he says calmly.
“Oh!” Gwen gasps. “Inside the barn,” she ushers the group quickly inside as they are closer to the grange than the house.
Once inside, Merlin opens his palm to reveal a small golden bird with stormcloud blue eyes.
Arthur bird.
Gwen smiles.
“When it was with Arthur, it had black feathers,” Merlin explains.
“That’s quite charming, Merlin. And clever,” Gwen says, peering at the little bird on Merlin’s palm.
“Okay,” Merlin tells the bird and it flits up to his shoulder now and begins chirping quietly.
“Cenred’s army has attacked,” Merlin translates, his eyes unfocused, gazing at some unseen point in the distance, “Lower town overrun… no information on the citadel ou the château yet… Morgause made the army immortal with the Cup… Leon and Bors with us… Elyan sûr, sans danger and well, also with us…”
Gwen breathes a sigh of relief.
“Who is Elyan?” Lancelot asks.
“My little brother,” Gwen explains quickly, her eyes not leaving Merlin.
“Need to find Uther and Gaius… get them to safety… find out how to stop an unstoppable army…” Merlin laughs now. “That part was instructions for me,” he explains, then refocuses.
“Camped in the forest just west of the lower town… Need plus men… Come as soon as toi can…” Merlin blushes now, and stops, blinking. He looks at the bird and it zips across, landing on Gwen’s shoulder now.
Gwen jumps slightly, but stays still so the little Arthur bird can land.
I miss toi and I l’amour toi very much. I cannot wait until we are back together so I can hold toi in my arms, hopefully within the walls of the castle. Be safe. I l’amour you.
Gwen smiles and looks down at her hands, color rising in her cheeks at just hearing Arthur’s soft baritone voice inside her head. Lancelot looks away glumly, still struggling with his fate.
Merlin clears his throat politely. “Done?” he asks. Gwen nods and Merlin holds his hand out. The bird flies back to him, and Merlin fixes it in his gaze and speaks.
“We will leave first thing in the morning. I have Lancelot and another, Percival, with me. toi won’t be disappointed, Arthur, he’s immense.”
Percival chuckles bashfully at this, looking at his fingernails.
“I will see what I can find out about the Cup. There must be a way to undo it. Please check on Gaius if toi can manage it.”
Merlin finishes and lifts his hand. The bird turns back into the tiny ball of light and zips from the barn, out through a high window.
“We should leave tonight,” Gwen says.
“Excuse me, ‘we?’ You are not going anywhere,” Merlin says, looking at Gwen.
“Oh, really?” Gwen challenges. “What makes toi think that toi can tell me what to do?”
Lancelot and Percival look at each other helplessly, trying to become invisible.
Merlin is right, Lancelot thinks. Gwen should stay here. He thinks these things, but he says nothing, knowing better.
“Gwen, I’m to look after your safety! How am I supposed to do that if I’m marching toi towards the danger?”
“You’re the bloody wizard, Merlin, I think toi can manage,” she snaps, turning towards the doors.
“Get the chevaux ready. We leave as soon as possible,” she orders, sweeping from the barn.
Merlin hurries after her, still trying to argue.
Percival nods, impressed with the tiny woman. “That is a Queen for sure,” he says, heading for his horse.
“She shouldn’t come with,” Lancelot mutters.
“It seems to me that toi gave up any right to have any say about what she does, Lancelot. No disrespect intended, but toi need to either deal with your feelings ou put them aside if you’re going to be any help here,” Percival says, turning back to his friend, tired of his sullen mood.
“Merlin told you,” Lancelot says quietly.
“He did. toi can’t dwell on what might have been, my friend. I live with that knowledge every jour of my life. toi know what I lost. plus than just my family, I Lost my future as well.”
“I know, Percival. I’m sorry. I’ve been behaving like an insufferable girl.”
“Life rolls on, and we must roll with it. Now shut up, stop moping, and pack your horse.”
A short time later, they hear Merlin and Gwen coming back to the barn. They are still arguing, but the two men can’t make out the words yet.
“Gwen,” Merlin reaches for her arm. “It’s not sûr, sans danger for toi to go. You know why.”
She stops and stares hard at him. “Yes, I do. But what I want to know is how the hell do you know?”
“Nothing is plus magical, Guinevere,” Merlin says softly.
Gwen closes her eyes. “I cannot stay here while toi are all over there. It would kill me. Not knowing. Not knowing when toi will come back, if toi will come back. What happens then, if toi all perish? I stay here, alone, for the rest of my life, just me and… my reminder.” A tear slips out now, and Merlin reaches down and wipes it away with his thumb.
“I’m not going to go into battle, Merlin,” she says, gathering her resolve again, looking up at him. “I will stay at the camp. I won’t even go into the lower town, won’t go near the castle. I promise. But I cannot stay here alone.”
Merlin sighs heavily. “Fine. But Arthur’s going to be mad, and he’s going to take it out on me. Remember that.”
“Sorry,” she hugs him and starts walking to the barn, slinging her bag back on her shoulder.
Merlin blinks after her a second. “Hey! Are those my trousers?”
“Not anymore,” she calls back. “Are toi coming ou are toi going to just stand there and gape?”
She’s been around Arthur too much, Merlin decides.
He runs to catch up. “Why did toi steal my trousers? Did toi have to cut the legs off?”
“Because the ones I made when I got here are too small already,” she says, sounding slightly irritated par this fact. “And yes, I did. They were hanging way off my feet.”
Merlin laughs and heads back into the barn. Three horses, since Gwaine took Merlin’s. “Gwen, you’ll have to ride with someone,” he says.
“I’ll ride with you, Merlin,” she says. Percival’s horse is burdened enough with just him, and riding with Lancelot would be cruel to both Lancelot and Arthur.
“All right,” Merlin says, understanding her reasons.
“My lady, can I assist you?” Percival asks, offering his hand. He helps her up into the saddle and then Merlin swings up behind her.
“Thank you, Percival,” Gwen says.
“We’ll stop halfway and make camp, and we should be in Camelot fairly early in the morning,” Merlin says, and the group moves out.
Part 7: link
“I’m sorry,” Gwen flushes, “I wasn’t expecting guests for dinner, um…”
“It’s alright, Gwen, Percival and I already ate,” Lancelot says quickly. “You and Merlin go on ahead.”
Merlin looks at Lancelot. So does Percival. Merlin sees the brief surprise flitting across Percival’s face and he knows that the two men haven’t eaten.
Gwen’s back is to them, fixing their plates, so she doesn’t see the exchange, something for which all three men are thankful.
“We’ll just sit while toi eat,” Lancelot says. “We’ve been traveling all day.”
“Please,” Gwen offers, motioning to some chairs. “Merlin,” she holds his plate out and he takes it, trying not to feel guilty about eating in front of Lancelot and his friend.
Dinner passes a little awkwardly, Merlin talking with his mouth full most of the time, bringing them up to speed. Lancelot and Percival listen intently, taking everything in. Gwen is surprised to learn the Lancelot already knows Merlin’s secret. Percival doesn’t seem concerned in the least with the news that this pale, seemingly-harmless man is a powerful warlock. He even asks for a demonstration.
“Do something,” he challenges, smiling.
“You saw me soundproof the house before,” Merlin mutters.
He always gets embarrassed when people ask him to do magic on command. Gwaine had taken full advantage one afternoon, having him do all manner of nonsense and refusing to take no for an answer.
Percival shrugs. “Could you, oh, stop me if toi had to? Not that I’d attack toi ou anything, but— argh!” His words are cut off with a slightly strangled noise as the large man finds himself immobilized, fixed in Merlin’s golden stare. The only things Percival can déplacer are his eyes, which dart from Merlin to Gwen and then back to Merlin. Merlin’s eyes fade and Percival slumps slightly.
“Guess so,” Percival chuckles.
“That was nothing,” Lancelot says. “I’ve seen what he can do. His looks are very deceiving.”
“We’re lucky you’re on our side, Merlin,” Gwen says, picking at her food.
“Gwen, toi should finish,” Merlin says quietly.
She looks at him, furrowing her brow. When did he get to be so protective? “I’m too worried about Arthur.”
“I know, Gwen. I’m worried, too.”
“There’s some left, if either of toi still have room. Percival, toi look as though toi have a healthy appetite,” Gwen offers.
“No, thank you,” Lancelot answers.
“Yes, thank you,” Percival says, standing. “Could do with a snack,” he adds carefully, then proceeds to finish Gwen’s plate and the rest of the uneaten vegetables and meat.
Guinevere starts to clear up around Percival, chatting with Merlin while he helps. She turns around and sees the door swinging closed behind Lancelot.
She sighs and frowns.
“I’ll go talk to him,” Merlin offers, squeezing Gwen’s hand.
“No, Merlin. I should go,” she says, grabbing her emballage, wrap and heading outside.
Percival turns around and looks at Merlin. “What am I missing, here?”
Merlin sighs and sits down across from him. “Well…”
xXx
“They wouldn’t die,” Elyan gasps once they are back at their camp. “I saw toi run that man through and he kept fighting like nothing happened! What sorcery is this?”
“The Cup of Life,” Arthur says.
“That’s real?” Elyan asks, then bends to start a feu for them.
“Yes. We don’t know how Morgause got her hands on it, but it’s real. Merlin a dit that if used in a certain way, a sorcerer can create his own personal army of immortals. ou in this case, her own personal army.”
“Merlin? What does he know about it? Isn’t he your servant?” Elyan asks, throwing some plus wood on the fire.
“Well, it turns out he’s a great deal plus than just a servant,” Arthur says, then looks up sharply as he hears a twig snap a short distance away. He holds his hands out, bidding them silence, and slowly reaches for his sword.
He stands. Gwaine and Elyan follow, flanking him on either side and slightly behind.
Arthur creeps forward, all his senses on alert, thankfully not dulled par his two relatively idle months. Thank the gods for Gwaine and our sparring sessions in the forest, he finds himself thinking.
One plus step forward, sword raised. Suddenly a figure springs from behind a tree, and metal clashes against metal just once before Arthur finds himself looking up into a familiar set of eyes.
“Leon!” he exclaims, but quietly. “What… why…?” Both men lower their swords and clasp forearms. “Bors!” he sees Sir Bors behind Sir Leon now and greets him similarly.
“Why are toi not wearing Camelot’s colors?”
“We left Camelot, my lord. I’m sorry,” Leon says, his voice tinged with remorse.
“You left? Come, sit,” Arthur bids them, and introduces Leon and Bors to Gwaine.
“And toi probably know Elyan,” Arthur nods.
“Yes the blacksmith,” Bors nods.
“How are you, Elyan?” Leon asks, and Arthur is surprised at the knight’s level of familiarity with Elyan.
“My mother was Sir Leon’s family’s maid,” Elyan explains, seeing the puzzled look crossing Arthur’s face. “And I’ve been meaning to thank toi for not mentioning who my sister is to King Uther,” Elyan tells Leon.
“Not a relevant piece of information,” Leon grins, having always been fond of Gwen.
“So,” Arthur says, steering the conversation back. “Why were toi not in Camelot and why have toi come back now?”
“Well, Sire, to be perfectly honest, I couldn’t stand dealing with your father in your absence,” he says, somewhat sheepishly. “Search parties were sent to look for you, and Bors and I took a detail. I had resolved to stay with toi if I found you, and if I did not find you, I would find another kingdom and appeal to their king for knighthood. Bors agreed to rejoindre me.”
“That bad, huh?”
“You have no idea, my lord,” Bors answers, pulling a skin of water from his belt.
“So toi wouldn’t have told my father where I was had toi found me,” Arthur muses, surprised and touched at his knight’s loyalty to him, but a little disappointed in Leon’s lack of loyalty to his father.
“I was made captain upon your, um, departure, Sire. Your father is a very difficult man to answer to.”
“He is, yes.”
“And the only person that he would even consider allow challenging him is you.”
“Hmm.”
“But Bors and I heard the rumors about Morgana and Morgause, so we decided to make our way back to see if we could help. That’s why we’re back.”
“Well, I’m glad to see both of you,” Arthur smiles. “I was just about to explain to Elyan why the invading soldiers cannot be killed, so toi arrived just in time.”
“One question first,” Leon says, smirking just slightly.
“Of course.”
“Did toi marry Gwen?”
“Yes, I did, and it was the best decision I’ve ever made. She and Merlin are sûr, sans danger and nowhere near here.”
“Why did toi take Merlin along, too? I’m curious.”
“You a dit one question, Leon,” Arthur laughs. “But I think your seconde question will be answered soon.”
xXx
“Are toi happy? With him?” Lancelot is sitting outside the house, facing away, looking out towards the water. He could just hear Guinevere’s soft footfalls as she hesitantly approached.
“Yes, I am,” she réponses softly, and he turns. She looks beautiful bathed in the moonlight, standing there, the breeze blowing her hair, clutching a châle around her shoulders. Her face is serene, but he can see the worry edging her eyes.
Worry for Arthur, ou at seeing me again? he wonders. He looks away again.
“You have no one to blame but yourself, Lancelot. toi do realize this, don’t you?” she asks, her voice still soft.
He says nothing, so she continues. “It was toi that left. Both times.”
“The first time was because I was banished from Camelot, Gwen.”
“I know that. But… did it never occur to toi to ask me to leave with you?”
“Would toi have?” he looks at her again.
“I honestly don’t know. My point is that toi did not even give me the option.”
“I am sorry for that, then,” he says. “I did it the seconde time, too, didn’t I? Left without giving toi a choice.”
She nods. “Why did toi do that?”
“I could see that Arthur had feelings for you, and Merlin confirmed it. I wasn’t going to come between you.”
“You weren’t even going to try?”
“How can I compete with a prince?”
He watches as Gwen’s face becomes very tight. She hitches the châle tighter around her shoulders with one hand, her other straying absently across her stomach. “You think me so shallow? toi think that my feelings for Arthur are prompted par the fact that he is a prince?”
Lancelot says nothing.
“The fact that I am here, with him, living the life of a farmer’s wife should give toi your answer, Lancelot,” she says tersely.
“I know toi are not that way. I know your priorities don’t lie with titles ou worldly possessions, Gwen,” he says quietly, chastised.
“I shed tears for toi when toi left that seconde time, Lancelot. Tears that he saw.”
“Oh?”
“He took it about as well as toi would expect,” she shrugs, and Lancelot actually chuckles. She sits beside him.
“I’m sorry, Guinevere, for never considering your opinion. Would it have changed anything if I had stayed?” he looks at her.
“I can’t answer that question, Lancelot,” she answers. “It’s all conjecture at this point. What-ifs.” She pauses with a sigh. “This might be hard for toi to hear, but I want to be honest with you. I will always have fond memories of you. But… any feelings I had for you, any of those feelings, are gone. toi came to my rescue and toi swept me off my feet. But it was an infatuation, an idea of what l’amour could possibly be.”
“You never loved me,” he whispers.
“No. I’m sorry. I never got the chance to know toi well enough to l’amour you, Lancelot. I… I know that toi are one of the kindest, most honest people I know, nobler than most. I know toi are a skilled warrior. I know that you, for whatever reason, found me attractive and treated me like a Lady even though I was a servant. But that’s all I know. I don’t know anything about who toi are ou what makes toi the way toi are. Do toi have any family? What was your childhood like? Are there any leisure activities toi enjoy? Do toi like children? Is there anything that frightens you? Do toi like… figs? I don’t know any of that.”
“And toi know these things about Arthur.”
“Yes, I do. Not because I interrogated him ou watched his every move, but because we took the time to find things out about one another. And he knows as much about me. Yes, the attraction was always there, that was undeniable. But attraction without the deeper meaning, the friendship behind it, well…” she pauses, “it doesn’t last.”
“I never took the time, so we’ll never know,” he says, nodding sadly. “And now it’s too late for me.”
“Yes. I’m sorry, Lancelot, but it is. toi closed that door when toi walked away the seconde time,” she says, hugging her arms around her middle.
“But he is good to you? You’re happy with him? Truly?”
“Yes. Very. toi only know Arthur the prince, Lancelot. The arrogant, brave, prattish spoiled prince. I assure you, he has changed. He’s still very much Prince Arthur, but the spoiled prat has all but disappeared.”
“Due to your influence, no doubt,” he guesses.
“I don’t know about that,” she says modestly, “but I do know that he is the missing piece of my heart, the blood that flows through my body, the very air that I breathe. Never for a seconde do I doubt his feelings for me, his l’amour for me.”
“You have no idea how much I miss him right now, how worried I am for him,” Gwen adds softly.
“If toi are happy, Gwen, than I am happy. I promise.”
“Thank you,” Gwen says, smiling at him. He still looks sad.
“Goldie,” Merlin’s voice calls from the doorway, “come inside. toi shouldn’t be out here in the cold, and toi need your rest.”
“Such a mother hen, this one,” Gwen sighs, standing. “Merlin, I told toi that toi don’t need to take care of me,” she complains, walking past him and into the house. “I’ve been taking care of both toi and Arthur since we got here, for goodness sake.”
“I promised Arthur I would keep toi sûr, sans danger and well. If toi get so much as a sniffle he’ll have my head,” he tells her.
She sighs exasperatedly. “Lancelot, toi and Percival are going to have to sleep in the barn, I’m afraid. Now that Arthur is gone, I can’t have strange men sleeping in my house. toi know I trust you, but we need to keep up a pretense, I’m sorry.”
“I understand,” Lancelot nods, followed par Percival, who stands. His head nearly touches the ceiling.
“Let me get toi some blankets.”
xXx
Leon is floored. Merlin. A wizard. And from what Arthur says, a pretty powerful one. “Does Gaius know?”
“Gaius!” Arthur exclaims, remembering the physician. “I hope he has sense enough to keep his head down. And yes, he’s known all along about Merlin.”
“Wow. What do we do now? How do we defeat an immortal army?” Bors asks.
“That’s what I need to find out,” Arthur says, standing and withdrawing the egg from his pocket.
“Where’s he going?” Elyan asks Gwaine.
“He’s going to send word to Merlin, I imagine,” Gwaine réponses with a shrug.
“With an egg?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
Arthur moves away from the group, not sure what will happen when he cracks the egg.
He studies it a moment, even squeezing it. It feels like a stone. Well, here goes…
Arthur taps the egg three times on the side of a tree. A moment later, it vibrates, and a small bird appears in a douche of blue sparks.
“Oh,” Arthur says, surprised. What were toi expecting? It’s an egg. Birds come out of eggs.
He doesn’t see the harm in returning to the feu with it, so he saunters back to the warmth of the fire, the small bird perched on his finger.
“You have a bird,” Gwaine says.
“So it seems. I tapped the egg like Merlin a dit and this bird appeared.” He looks at the bird in the firelight. It is small, sparrow-sized, but with shiny black feathers and large blue eyes like sapphires.
“Merlin bird,” Arthur chuckles, realization hitting him.
The bird looks back at him, cocking its little head just so, almost as if it is saying, “Well?”
“What do toi do now?” Elyan asks.
“Not sure. I don’t know if I’m supposed to attach a note to its leg, or…” he stops as the bird flits up to his shoulder and chirps softly in his ear.
Arthur laughs as the bird perches on his finger again.
“Did… did it just say something to you?” Leon asks.
“It said, ‘Talk to the bird, Cabbage Head,’” Arthur says, shaking his head.
“All I heard was chirping,” Gwaine says. He is sitting beside Arthur, on the side that the bird leapt to.
“It was… it was like Merlin’s voice was inside my head,” Arthur explains. “Rather unpleasant, actually, now that I think about it.”
The men laugh, and then Arthur holds his hand up again.
“All right.” He lifts the bird and looks at him. “Merlin…”
xXx
Gwen, Merlin, Lancelot and Percival are walking to the grange when a small ball of light whizzes towards them.
“Whoa!” Lancelot leaps in front of Gwen and Percival reaches for his sword.
Merlin holds his hand out, easily catching the ball in his palm. “Message from Arthur,” he says calmly.
“Oh!” Gwen gasps. “Inside the barn,” she ushers the group quickly inside as they are closer to the grange than the house.
Once inside, Merlin opens his palm to reveal a small golden bird with stormcloud blue eyes.
Arthur bird.
Gwen smiles.
“When it was with Arthur, it had black feathers,” Merlin explains.
“That’s quite charming, Merlin. And clever,” Gwen says, peering at the little bird on Merlin’s palm.
“Okay,” Merlin tells the bird and it flits up to his shoulder now and begins chirping quietly.
“Cenred’s army has attacked,” Merlin translates, his eyes unfocused, gazing at some unseen point in the distance, “Lower town overrun… no information on the citadel ou the château yet… Morgause made the army immortal with the Cup… Leon and Bors with us… Elyan sûr, sans danger and well, also with us…”
Gwen breathes a sigh of relief.
“Who is Elyan?” Lancelot asks.
“My little brother,” Gwen explains quickly, her eyes not leaving Merlin.
“Need to find Uther and Gaius… get them to safety… find out how to stop an unstoppable army…” Merlin laughs now. “That part was instructions for me,” he explains, then refocuses.
“Camped in the forest just west of the lower town… Need plus men… Come as soon as toi can…” Merlin blushes now, and stops, blinking. He looks at the bird and it zips across, landing on Gwen’s shoulder now.
Gwen jumps slightly, but stays still so the little Arthur bird can land.
I miss toi and I l’amour toi very much. I cannot wait until we are back together so I can hold toi in my arms, hopefully within the walls of the castle. Be safe. I l’amour you.
Gwen smiles and looks down at her hands, color rising in her cheeks at just hearing Arthur’s soft baritone voice inside her head. Lancelot looks away glumly, still struggling with his fate.
Merlin clears his throat politely. “Done?” he asks. Gwen nods and Merlin holds his hand out. The bird flies back to him, and Merlin fixes it in his gaze and speaks.
“We will leave first thing in the morning. I have Lancelot and another, Percival, with me. toi won’t be disappointed, Arthur, he’s immense.”
Percival chuckles bashfully at this, looking at his fingernails.
“I will see what I can find out about the Cup. There must be a way to undo it. Please check on Gaius if toi can manage it.”
Merlin finishes and lifts his hand. The bird turns back into the tiny ball of light and zips from the barn, out through a high window.
“We should leave tonight,” Gwen says.
“Excuse me, ‘we?’ You are not going anywhere,” Merlin says, looking at Gwen.
“Oh, really?” Gwen challenges. “What makes toi think that toi can tell me what to do?”
Lancelot and Percival look at each other helplessly, trying to become invisible.
Merlin is right, Lancelot thinks. Gwen should stay here. He thinks these things, but he says nothing, knowing better.
“Gwen, I’m to look after your safety! How am I supposed to do that if I’m marching toi towards the danger?”
“You’re the bloody wizard, Merlin, I think toi can manage,” she snaps, turning towards the doors.
“Get the chevaux ready. We leave as soon as possible,” she orders, sweeping from the barn.
Merlin hurries after her, still trying to argue.
Percival nods, impressed with the tiny woman. “That is a Queen for sure,” he says, heading for his horse.
“She shouldn’t come with,” Lancelot mutters.
“It seems to me that toi gave up any right to have any say about what she does, Lancelot. No disrespect intended, but toi need to either deal with your feelings ou put them aside if you’re going to be any help here,” Percival says, turning back to his friend, tired of his sullen mood.
“Merlin told you,” Lancelot says quietly.
“He did. toi can’t dwell on what might have been, my friend. I live with that knowledge every jour of my life. toi know what I lost. plus than just my family, I Lost my future as well.”
“I know, Percival. I’m sorry. I’ve been behaving like an insufferable girl.”
“Life rolls on, and we must roll with it. Now shut up, stop moping, and pack your horse.”
A short time later, they hear Merlin and Gwen coming back to the barn. They are still arguing, but the two men can’t make out the words yet.
“Gwen,” Merlin reaches for her arm. “It’s not sûr, sans danger for toi to go. You know why.”
She stops and stares hard at him. “Yes, I do. But what I want to know is how the hell do you know?”
“Nothing is plus magical, Guinevere,” Merlin says softly.
Gwen closes her eyes. “I cannot stay here while toi are all over there. It would kill me. Not knowing. Not knowing when toi will come back, if toi will come back. What happens then, if toi all perish? I stay here, alone, for the rest of my life, just me and… my reminder.” A tear slips out now, and Merlin reaches down and wipes it away with his thumb.
“I’m not going to go into battle, Merlin,” she says, gathering her resolve again, looking up at him. “I will stay at the camp. I won’t even go into the lower town, won’t go near the castle. I promise. But I cannot stay here alone.”
Merlin sighs heavily. “Fine. But Arthur’s going to be mad, and he’s going to take it out on me. Remember that.”
“Sorry,” she hugs him and starts walking to the barn, slinging her bag back on her shoulder.
Merlin blinks after her a second. “Hey! Are those my trousers?”
“Not anymore,” she calls back. “Are toi coming ou are toi going to just stand there and gape?”
She’s been around Arthur too much, Merlin decides.
He runs to catch up. “Why did toi steal my trousers? Did toi have to cut the legs off?”
“Because the ones I made when I got here are too small already,” she says, sounding slightly irritated par this fact. “And yes, I did. They were hanging way off my feet.”
Merlin laughs and heads back into the barn. Three horses, since Gwaine took Merlin’s. “Gwen, you’ll have to ride with someone,” he says.
“I’ll ride with you, Merlin,” she says. Percival’s horse is burdened enough with just him, and riding with Lancelot would be cruel to both Lancelot and Arthur.
“All right,” Merlin says, understanding her reasons.
“My lady, can I assist you?” Percival asks, offering his hand. He helps her up into the saddle and then Merlin swings up behind her.
“Thank you, Percival,” Gwen says.
“We’ll stop halfway and make camp, and we should be in Camelot fairly early in the morning,” Merlin says, and the group moves out.
Part 7: link
