Love Can Change Many Things
A story dedicated to Arthur and Guinevere
Arthur had never meant for her to find out that he was leaving to face the Great Dragon.
When he had left in search of the dragonlord he had told her so as not to worry her with his absence. Of course, if he hadn't told her himself, Merlin or Gaius surely would have anyway, but he wanted her to hear it from his own lips. She needed to know his thoughts were with her in every situation.
This time, however... this time he couldn't be sure if he'd return. He couldn't be sure he'd ever get to see her kind face again, her knowledgable eyes, her gentle hands. At first that thought had made him want to go straight to her; to hold her again, to remember the way she fit so perfectly in his arms and to hear her soft voice one last time. But then he remembered how much she cared for him, and him for her, and he couldn't even bring himself to think of the one important word he would have to say to her.
Farewell was not an option. Perhaps if he never said goodbye she would never think of him as truely gone.
How selfish that was of him.
But as his manservant and loyal friend stood next to him, sword in hand and looking determined, he knew that Merlin was too afraid to say goodbye too. And that gave him some comfort.
How selfish.
Nobody but he, Merlin, his knights, his father and Gaius were to know that they were going to face the dragon on their own terms. True, the chance of victory was very little indeed, but this was not a shot in the dark. They would try their hardest to slay the beast, but their true aim was to draw its attention away from the city and his people. To give them a chance to tend to the injured uninterrupted and perhaps flee to a safer place. To keep Guinevere safe.
And by keeping her safe, she would know that he cared as deeply for her as he claimed, and that it was because he was only afraid - so very afraid - of losing her that he did not let her know he was going.
But as though fate resented him, she appeared around a corner before the group of noble knights on their way to fetch the horses for the battle. She halted abruptly in her tracks as she took in the sight of the king's most trusted fighters, her best friend and the man she cared too much for and their determined expressions, armour and swords.
She didn't even have to ask.
Arthur stopped just as suddenly as she and his men did the same behind him. He opened his mouth to explain, to say anything, but he found his throat was dry and words had failed him anyway. His brain had begun to melt the moment her expression told him she had them figured out. She began to back up, head shaking minutely from side to side, jaw set, chest rising and falling too quickly, eyes flickering from him to Merlin to Leon and the others and back to Arthur.
Her eyes were glistening too much and he tried to swallow, to make his brain work and say something again, but all he could manage was a croaky 'Guine-' before she spun on her heel and fled back the way she had come.
Without even making a concious decision, he lurched forward to follow her, but the feather-light weight of Merlin's hand on his shoulder caused him to hesitate. He chanced a glance at his knights, most of whom were looking somewhat confused and a bit put-out by the short display - but Merlin was there, looking almost as guilty as Arthur felt and shaking his head sadly.
He was silent as the dead the entire ride out to the clearing in the forest, Guinevere's face etched into his mind. If he closed his eyes, the image became clearer, and he could see the hurt in her own beautiful, deep brown eyes.
Hurt... and fear.
Fear for him, for his life. Fear for Camelot if he could not return to be the great king she told him she knew he could be. Fear for herself, and what she would do with herself if he didn't come back.
A half hour passed by quickly enough, and finally they were at the clearing, gathered together in the centre, waiting for some sign of the giant beast.
Lost in the chilled silence and anticipation, Arthur thought he could hear her voice echo through his head. He was going mad, he presumed. But there it was again, telling him if this was what he believed he had to do, he must give it his all.
'There's no backing out now,' he heard. 'Just try and stay safe. For me.'
He would do anything for her. As the dragon swooped almost gracefully toward them from the mountains, he vowed that he would do what he could to get rid of the menace and return to his love before dawn. For her. For himself.
He allowed himself a small smirk before his face set in fierce determination and he ordered his knights into battle.
A/N: ...and a title dedicated to Gaius. The plot bunnies would not leave me alone, for possibly the first time in my life. Hence, my first story here. I do hope you enjoyed this. To my suprise, I quite enjoyed writing it. It was going to be a one shot, but I figured I'd split it into two so that it didn't drag too much. (And I haven't finished the second part yet ¬_¬)