In Memoriam
Rin and Arturia's first Halloween together.
This short story assumes that the reader has read the fan fiction The King and Her Queen. In Memoriam takes place almost a year after the events in chapter 14.
"Shouldn't I dress as a ghost or some sort of monster?" asked Arturia as she watched Rin rummage through the costumes in the Aerie's prop room.
"Don't have to... ah, where is it...?" mumbled Rin. "Anything goes for costumes nowadays." She was sure that she saw it here last time when Nell chose to do a play. Upon her command, the orb of light hovered to the left. She spotted brown fur and reached for it.
"Found it!" beamed Rin as she lifted the costume.
Arturia blinked. "A lion? You're going to wear that?"
Rin grinned with anticipation. "No, you are."
"What? But why a lion?" She let Rin lead her to the dressing room.
"I think it'll look good on you." said Rin as she began to unbutton her blouse. "Besides, don't you like lions?"
"Well, it does seem rather endearing..." Internally, she berated herself, "What am I doing?! I shouldn't encourage her!"
She crossed her arms. "It's not scary enough."
"Please, just try it for me..." Rin's eyes pleaded to the best of their ability.
Arturia sighed. "Oh, all right..."
As a child, she celebrated Samhain with Bedivere and Kay. With bed sheets over their heads and makeshift lanterns in their hands, they ran around town playing tricks and collecting their reward of sweets, nuts or dried fruit. When the bonfire was lit at the center of town, they would bask in the warmth of the fire and eat their treats with apple cider.
Guided by Rin, she slipped into the suit. Rin zipped her in and picked up the headpiece. She positioned the headpiece and took a step back.
"Hmmm..... something is missing..." She paused for a moment and then exclaimed, "Ah, I know!"
A quick swipe from Arturia's pile of clothes fetched the blue ribbon. Rin's nimble fingers looped it around her neck and tied it. "There! All done!" She turned Arturia towards the mirror.
Arturia blushed with embarrassment. The headpiece was designed so that her face was exposed where the lion's mouth was. It looked like the lion was devouring her head.
"Let's pick another one..."
"But you look so cute!"
"One should look scary!" protested Arturia. During Samhain, they scared many townsfolk, young and old. She was proud of her skill in doing so. "How can I scare anyone when I look like this?" To drive her point home, she puffed up her cheeks and growled, "Rooowwwr!!!!"
She expected Rin to laugh it off but she just stood there. A couple of seconds later, she realized why when a trickle of blood flowed from her nose. With practiced ease, she caught her before she fell to the floor.
Rin's imagination failed to anticipate Arturia's growl, and her mind was unable to defend itself from the massive attack of cuteness. The atmosphere around her seemed like a silent movie. Her consciousness barely registered that Arturia placed her carefully on a nearby chair and put some tissues in her hand. By reflex, her hand managed to guide them to her nose.
As soon as Arturia took the headpiece off, her senses snapped back into gear. "Wait! Don't take it off yet!"
"I can't wear this! Just... just look at you."
"I'll be fine... I just didn't expect that." She snorted up and moved her hand away from her nose. "See? All gone." She hoped that it was.
Arturia eyed her suspiciously. "What are you going to wear, by the way?"
"A fairy. Sakura made it for me."
Unwittingly foiled by her sister-in-law, Arturia reluctantly discarded her plan to force Rin to wear a costume that she picked. Her disappointed and embarrassed mood etched a scowl on her face. However, her scowl melted as she noticed Rin's adoring eyes and flushed face. She coughed into her paw.
"Since you made me dress up, you should show me yours."
As she stood up, Rin carefully balanced herself. "Gladly..."
After Rin modeled enough to Arturia's satisfaction, they gathered their costumes and went to the dining hall to have dinner with the Emrys. During dinner, Arturia asked, "Marlen, Wayne wants to meet you by tomorrow night to give you a message. Do you have some time?"
Marlen lifted an eyebrow. "Hmm... a rather unusual request. Why me and why didn't he give you the letter?"
"His exact words were 'Master of the House of Emrys'. Please correct me if I am mistaken, but I believe that indicates you. He also said that it's not a letter. He showed me a translucent orb about the size of a fist."
All the Emrys paused in thought. Marlen broke the silence.
"It sounds dodgy. Can you handle it, Mum?"
Eileen nodded lightly. "I'll try. But if the spell is woven securely, you'll have to unravel it."
"Please give it a go with Maman and Rin, preferably at the manor tomorrow afternoon. Is that all right, Rin?"
"Of course, Master. I'll be glad to help." Rin was relieved that Marlen picked that time. She was teaching some undergraduate classes tomorrow morning.
Meanwhile, Arturia was perplexed by their response, but minded her manners. "Thank you, all. I will call Wayne and tell him to meet us at the manor."
Their actions piqued her curiosity. They were being very careful about unlocking the message and chose to do it outside the Aerie. She would have to ask Rin about it later.
The rest of the dinner was uneventful. After Arturia finished calling Wayne, they played the usual games and entertainment. When the clock struck eleven, Arturia and Rin bid them good night and made their way to the garage. They hopped into their blue Lotus Elise. Arturia pulled out of the parking space and drove onto the platform that would descend to street level.
During their descent, Arturia asked Rin, "Why are they being so careful?"
"Sending messages with an orb like that requires knowledge of very ancient magic. It also requires a lot of skill. I'm sure Master or Eileen could do it, so the sender must know what they're capable of. It also ensures that a less skillful mage could not unseal it. However, since the receiver would be concentrating on unsealing it, the sender might sneak in a hidden attack spell before the receiver could notice. I know Wayne is trustworthy, but he could be an unwitting messenger of a trap."
"I see. Will you be all right then?"
"Michelle will be there. And you'll be there. What's to worry about?"
Arturia smirked. "In that case, is there anything I should worry about?"
Rin leered at her. "I'll let you know... in bed..."
When they reach the entrance to the street tunnel, the engine roared to life and they sped quickly home.
They gathered in the main training room in the manor at Beddgelert, a village near Dinas Emrys. Rin prepared the wide-area protection spells while Michelle cast shield spells on Eileen. When they were ready, Eileen stood in the magic circle and extended her hand towards Wayne.
Wayne nodded grimly and walked to Eileen. He opened a small case and picked up a translucent orb from its padded interior. He held it as if it was a fragile egg and carefully placed the orb in Eileen's palm. Then he stepped away from the circle.
Eileen began to chant and weave her hands over the orb. Rin watched her intently with her magesight for signs of a trap. A tense three minutes passed before she stopped chanting. Even then, she waited another minute before unlocking the orb.
Rin expected a silhouette of the sender to appear within the orb, but she only noticed an aura that indicated that the orb was active. At least five minutes passed before Eileen dispersed the spell. Eileen's eyes shifted between Arturia and Wayne as she sat down on the ground with the orb cradled in her lap.
"It's from Sir Bercilak."
Arturia blinked. Her mouth moved silently for a few moments before she spoke, "That... that can't be... it's been over a thousand years!" She turned towards Wayne for confirmation.
"It's true, your Highness. The story handed down to us is that he went to sleep about a year after Constantine became king. For generations, the descendants of Sir Gwaine have watched over his sleep and maintained his estate. It seems that he woke up about a week after you came back."
"Why didn't you tell me then?"
"He didn't want to." He made a wry smile. "I was hoping to find out why today."
"He wants to see you on Halloween eve." said Eileen. Her usual cheerful face was very serious. "He also left us a portal to seal."
"Non! He's had one all along!" exclaimed Michelle. Then understanding dawned on her face. "Mais oui! So that's how he managed to survive."
"Most likely." Eileen nodded and turned to Rin. "I know you have plans, but I can tell you now that Marlen will ask you to close it."
Rin realized it as soon as she mentioned the portal. "It's okay. I'm glad to help." This meant that they would miss the festival's evening events tomorrow. Ever since she noticed that lion costume, she fantasized how it would feel cuddled in those warm, furry arms in front of a blazing bonfire. She sighed. She would have to wait until next year.
Eileen stood up. "Looks like there's no other spells on this. Does he want a reply, Wayne?"
"No, I'll tell him myself." Wayne opened the case and let her place the orb inside. Then he closed it and handed it to her.
"Arturia, there's a couple of things I have to tell Rin in private. Do you mind waiting?"
"No, not at all. Take your time."
Rin followed Eileen to one of the studies. Eileen closed the door and held out her hands around Rin's head. "I'll show you what you need to know. Are you ready?"
"Yes."
After Eileen was done, Rin was fascinated by what she learned. They went back to the training room. Arturia and Wayne discussed an appropriate meeting time at Sir Bercilak's estate. After that, everyone said their goodbyes and went their own way.
As they exited the estate gates, Rin checked her watch. "Is it okay to have dinner with Sakura?"
"Sure."
"Okay, let me give her a call."
Sakura was glad to have them over. Rin ordered some take out over the phone and they picked it up before going to Sakura's cottage. They were just getting out of the car when Sakura opened the door and greeted them.
"Nee-san!"
Her right hand held Tokiomi's. He was obviously trying to walk in their direction. Rin knelt before him and Sakura let go. He hugged her and babbled happily.
"There, there, Tokiomi. Have you been a good boy?" Rin carried him in and Sakura closed the door behind Arturia.
"Where's Shiro?" asked Rin.
In response, Sakura merely held out the daily newspaper. The headline read, "Masked Vigilante Saves Again".
Arturia put the bags of food on the table and took the paper. "He's still at it?"
"He goes mostly at night. Don't worry, nee-san. It's okay. The cottage has all sorts of security spells. And please don't scold him. He helps with the housework."
"Police caution that an untrained civilian runs the risk of hurting himself and others. The masked vigilante has only been lucky so far. Crime fighting should be left to professionals." Arturia chuckled at the article. "Sounds like he ruffled some egos."
Rin put a bib on Tokiomi and secured him in the infant high chair. "In any case, he can have leftovers when he gets back. If we leave him any, that is." She winked.
They laughed together. With that, they unpacked the food and prepared to eat.
The Academy square was bustling with people in various costumes. Small makeshift huts lined the boundaries of the square to simulate a village. To the north of the square, a stage was decorated with grotesque mannequins and ghoulish banners that welcomed everyone to the festival. A group of booths to the west of the square served as a marketplace. A small stage hosted a group of musicians who were playing colorful Celtic music.
Hand in paw, Arturia and Rin strolled leisurely through the crowd. Rin was glad that Arturia stopped frowning after she saw some rather outrageous and from her point of view, more embarrassing costumes than hers.
They walked without any goal in mind and randomly tried out some games or food for fun. When they passed by one of the makeshift houses, Rin tugged on Arturia's arm.
"Let's try her." She knocked on the plywood door. "Trick or treat!"
The sign on the house read Bostwick, so Arturia assumed that Bostwick might be the last name of the woman who opened the door. Rin gestured slightly and a cloud of silvery dust burst forth from her sleeve. When the dust cleared, she held a blooming dandelion.
The woman laughed and held out two small boxes. "A token of thanks to the fairy with the flower."
The flower was exchanged for the boxes that went into the bag that they received at the registration booth. Arturia noted that it was labeled 'TREATS'.
"Some of the professors are participating in trick or treat." explained Rin. "They'll always give you something even if you don't do any tricks, but they'll give you something a little extra if you do a trick."
"But I don't know magic."
Rin shook her head. "You don't have to. See?" She pointed towards a couple of young children who knocked at Bostwick's door. The children yelled "Boo!" and Bostwick acted really scared. She rewarded them with some candy.
"I can't do that with this outfit!"
"Just be yourself. Come on." Rin guided her to another hut. "Let's do it together." She knocked.
A man opened the door. They yelled, "Boo!" while Rin showered him with confetti. The man laughed and handed them two small spray cans.
They tried a few more huts. Arturia stopped worrying about being scary and began to enjoy doing tricks for the fun of it. Soon, they earned enough treats to fill half the bag.
"They give strange treats..." noted Arturia as she peered in the bag.
"If they like your trick, the professors will give you things like a portion of a spell, or potion ingredients. You can trade them at the swap meet next week."
"I see... an interesting way to reward tricks."
A crisp beeping sound alerted Rin to check her watch. She sighed. "We have to get ready."
"Just one more hut..." Arturia grabbed her hand.
Rin laughed and let her lead the way.
Wayne met them at the estate gate. They followed his car as they drove through a winding graveled path to the main door of the mansion. They parked and followed him into the house. They passed through the basement that contained racks of aging wine.
They went down another set of stairs. This time the room was full of empty barrels and bags of unknown contents. Another set of stairs brought them to a room of moldy furniture. Wayne navigated through several passageways.
Judging by the masonry, Arturia guessed that they were in the oldest part of the mansion. The stale air indicated that people came here rarely. However, what disturbed her the most was the unusual chill in the air. It gave her goose bumps.
Wayne unlocked a large ornate door. He opened it for them. "Your Highness..."
Arturia nodded and went into a large room. The room was decorated with faded tapestries, shelves filled with various items and racks of rusted weapons and armor. At the far wall were a table and a set of chairs. She clenched her hand. Now she understood her unease.
"Hail Bercilak de Hautdesert."
With several long strides, Wayne walked to his side. He put his hand on his shoulder. "Hail thy Majesty, Arturia Pendragon. Forgive me for not addressing thee properly, for I can no longer speak. Sir Wayne shall speak for me."
She was not surprised. What sat near Wayne looked more like a dried up corpse. Scattered tufts of white replaced previously dark green hair. Yellowed skin revealed the contours of his skull. Clouded pupils were barely discernable against the whites of his eyes. His usual vibrant green finery hung like faded tattered cloth over an emaciated frame.
"Time passes, Bercilak. Speak whilst thou can."
"I am glad to see thee return, milord. Twould be an honor to pass my legacy." Long twig-like fingers curled into a fist. The fist seemed to move with deliberate slowness until it rested over his chest. "Long live the King."
His eyes closed and his head pitched forward. Without Wayne's hand, Arturia was sure that he would have fallen to the floor. Wayne's alarmed face confirmed her suspicions.
"What... what happened...? He was able to speak yesterday..." asked Wayne as he knelt before Bercilak. He pushed him back gently to settle into the chair.
"His time was near." She did not dare tell Wayne that her very presence might have caused his death or rather, the end of his undeath. Because of its holy nature, Avalon disrupted necromantic magic. Bercilak probably realized it and refrained from appearing in court. Eileen gave a hint yesterday when she kept the orb. She probably guessed what would happen if they met. "Anyway, I doubt that he called me here to exchange pleasantries and die."
"Just before, he told me to give you his estate." Wayne paused in thought. "From our brief mind link, I felt that he was happy... I guess he wanted to see if you really came back. Right before he died, I felt a strong sense of relief... and then... peace." A tear dropped from his eye and he wiped it away with the back of his hand.
"I see." She looked around the room and verified that there were items that once belonged to her, the Knights of the Round Table and several key court officials. She closed his unseeing eyes. "He brought me here to be remembered, but he wanted me to remember everyone. This room is proof of that. While Rin and I check out the portal, please ask Peter if I may visit all the existing graves of the Round Table."
"Yes, your Highness. By your leave."
Arturia nodded and Wayne left. She turned to Rin. "Did you notice anything?"
"Channels of mana going to him are fading. I have a general idea of where the portal is, but we could just follow the mana before it disappears."
"Let's go."
They walked through several passageways and down two more sets of stairs before the trail ended in front of an ornate green door. Rin passed her palm before it.
"It's copper." She paused for a few seconds. "I can't detect anything beyond it. The seal's too good. I'll have to undo the seal."
"Do you want me to get ready?"
"Yeah, just in case."
They transformed into their respective battle outfits. Rin cast the usual set of protective spells before unsealing the door. The door creaked open and Rin guided the light orb inside. The orb illuminated a large cavern. Rin sucked her breath.
"What are those?" asked Arturia with a mixture of dread and fascination.
"Looks like Iron ravagers. They feed on iron." She peered around. "The entire cavern seems to be plated with copper. A static field starts about ten feet from the door. My guess is that the field is sustained by mana from the portal."
Rin narrowed her eyes. "It seems to be weakening. Maybe Bercilak was managing it?"
"If the field goes down, what will the ravagers do?"
"They'll go towards the nearest source of iron. Unfortunately, that's us." Rin dispelled her mage robe and began to take off any metallic object. "As long as they don't ingest more than a pea of iron, they'll remain docile and we should be able to herd them towards the portal. We'll have to leave stuff with iron outside the door. They'll still come to us though. They can sense iron in our bloodstream, so if you have a wound, we should bandage it securely. If they manage to taste your blood, they might suck you dry."
Arturia dispelled her armor. Changing into her armor caused her normal clothes to fly off. Thankfully Rin figured out a spell to return her clothes after dispelling her armor. "Do they have any weaknesses?"
"Oh, yeah... they hate garlic."
The sound of footsteps echoed from the nearby passageway. In the dim light, Wayne trotted to where they were. He stopped when he caught a glimpse of what was in the cavern. Rin explained to him what they found.
"I'll bring all the garlic down from the kitchen and some poles to push the ravagers away."
Arturia handed him her car keys. "Get the bag of treats from my car. There might be something useful there."
"Should I bring some servants with me?"
"No." replied Rin. "I will be forced to erase their memories."
"Understood. I'll be back soon."
While waiting for him, Rin began to cast a barrier on the door so that only the three of them could pass. While she was casting it, Arturia noticed that some of the ravagers were moving. They resembled sea anemones with crablike gray legs at the bottom of their bodies. Unlike sea anemones, their tendrils and bodies seemed to be ethereal. The smallest one was about the size of her thumb and the largest one was as tall as her boot. When Rin finished, she showed her the moving ravagers.
"I'll stand guard here. There might be something to push them away in the room we passed by."
"Can't you use magic to just shove them into the portal?"
"There are a lot of them. I need to close the portal and I want to save my mana in case of an emergency. If we can do half and then I'll use magic to do the rest."
Arturia went to the room. The walls were lined with iron cages and shelves with jars. She searched around and found some rope. She returned to Rin. Together, they used the rope to move a few that ventured too close to the door. Finally, Wayne returned with a bag, five poles and three snow shovels.
"These are made of durable plastic." explained Wayne as he handed a shovel to Arturia.
While Rin crushed cloves of garlic with the supplied mortar and pestle, Arturia rummaged through the treats bag. She took out two bottles of brownish liquid.
"Will this work Rin?"
"Garlic mouthwash. Guaranteed to repel vampires and ghouls." Rin laughed. "It's a gag treat, but yes, it will work. Spread it on your hands and skin. Rub the rest on the shovel and poles." She continued to crush more cloves to spread across the front of the door.
Arturia and Wayne did as they were told. She was about to use the second bottle, but decided to save it just in case. Instead, she asked for more crushed cloves from Rin to spread on the poles. After they were done, they pushed the ravagers away from the door. They skittered away after being touched by the shovel. Rin joined them when she was finished. She peered across the cavern.
"Looks like the portal's near the center. Let's push in that direction."
Together they gathered a batch of ravagers and found a dark hole about three feet in diameter near the middle of the cavern. They pushed them in. By now, the static field was almost gone. Only the ravagers near the hole were still. They pushed those in as well. Patiently, they worked. The ravagers were so tame and went wherever they pushed them. Arturia wondered why they were called ravagers at all.
Suddenly, Rin yelped. Her shoe caught on a protruding copper plate and she slipped.
"Ow..." She rubbed her knee. She felt a tug on her shoe and she quickly turned around to swat it away. Unfortunately, she was too late and the shoe disappeared under its body. Rin knocked it over and tried to reach for her shoe but stopped when she saw the jagged fangs tearing the shoe to shreds. Something glinted for a moment.
"Arturia! We have to toss this one in!"
Arturia ran behind the ravager and whacked it towards the portal. It sailed over other ravagers and would have gone in but the nearby ravagers extended their tendrils and caught it. Suddenly, a shrieking sound filled the air.
"Kinensis!" A wave of force pushed the ravager with her shoe and the other ravagers nearby into the portal. "To the door!" yelled Rin. "It's the metal shanks in our shoes! We gotta get rid of them!" When they reached the door, they tossed their shoes out.
"Now what?" asked Arturia as she gripped her shovel.
"Step on the cloves and stay in this area. When a ravager finds iron, it tells the others and the whole lot of them go berserk. They're going to come after our feet. They probably won't cross the cloves, but if they do, I may have to kill them. Kinensis!" Another batch of ravagers fell into the hole. Meanwhile, groups of ravagers were pilling up on top of each other.
Arturia watched in horror as a pile merged into a larger ravager. It began to move in their direction. It trampled on other ravagers along the way and those were also merged into it. She grabbed a pole and charged.
"Arturia!"
"I'll cover her!" yelled Wayne who also grabbed a pole.
Bracing the pole against her. Arturia struck the large ravager like a jousting knight. The pole splintered against its tough hide but it caused the ravager to topple over. By now, the large ravager was about ten feet tall and five feet wide thus making it too large for the hole. Jagged teeth dripping with foul acid lined its huge mouth.
Frantically, they swung at the ravagers to prevent them from merging while Rin swept ravagers into the portal. Ravagers were tossed away from each other. Meanwhile, the large ravager used its long tentacles to get itself upright. With a shrill cry, some tentacles immobilized Arturia's shovel while other tentacles wound around her waist and lifted her. Nearby ravagers went after her feet but recoiled when they touched her socks. Instead, their tendrils hooked into her jeans and began to rip it.
"Your Highness!" Wayne imitated her attack and toppled the ravager.
Arturia uncapped her remaining bottle and splashed its contents inside the huge mouth. A high-pitched grinding noise blasted out of its mouth. She splashed the ravagers that were attacking her. Those ravagers curled up and appeared to twitch in agony. She batted them into the portal.
Noxious fumes wafted from the large ravager's mouth and its body began to crack. Alarmed, Arturia stepped away and took a defensive stance. She watched as it slowly separated into smaller ravagers. She took the opportunity to fetch the rest of the poles and used the poles to pry them apart. Behind her, Wayne continued to bat ravagers into the portal.
"Having... fun...?" huffed Rin. Beads of sweat rolled down her forehead.
"These things are a pain."
"Yeah, if only there weren't so many of them. Kinensis..." The body broke up.
"Damn you, Bercilak! If he weren't already dead, I would've ordered him to clean up this mess."
"They've calmed down once you got rid of this one. We can just push the rest in."
"Why in the world didn't he send them back? He's skilled enough to allow mana in, and to keep creatures out."
"Maybe he wanted to keep them. That would explain the static field."
"For what?"
Rin thought for a moment. "That room... he probably was studying them. He captured them and caged them."
When the last ravager went in, Rin put a barrier on the portal and then they checked the room. The jars on the shelves contained shriveled remains of unknown creatures.
Rin wrinkled her nose at the contrasting aromas that wafted from a jar. "Phew... for a knight, he's got bad hobbies. These have got to go."
They dumped all the jars into the portal. Rin sat down when they were finished.
"Let me rest for a bit and then I'll close it."
"I'll go get some refreshments." offered Wayne.
Arturia nodded. "Please."
He returned with a basket of food and they had a quick snack. Energized, Rin sketched out the seal for the portal. The casting of the spell was routine and they all breathed a sigh of relief when it was done. They exited the cavern and Rin sealed the door.
"That'll do for another five years or so." said Rin as she bent down to pick up their belongings.
After they gathered their things, they made their way back to the mansion. As they walked, Arturia asked Wayne, "Did you talk to Peter?"
"Yes, your Highness. He will call everyone and make arrangements. He said that it would probably take around two days to see them all. He will call you when the itinerary is complete."
"Rin, would you like to go?"
"Of course! The Academy doesn't have any classes tomorrow."
"Thanks."
"By the way, why did you attack that huge thing? You only had a pole and a shovel."
"Because... I don't want you to kill anymore. If you have to kill... leave it to me. Don't stain your hands with death." Internally, her thoughts voiced her troubled heart. "Besides... I'm already stained. And... I don't want you to be like me..."
Rin reached out and held her hand. "Please don't say that... we promised each other, remember? Don't carry the burden all by yourself."
Her words lifted the weariness in her heart and she squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry... I... get caught up sometimes... so just remind me, okay?"
"You silly..."
Finally, they made it back to their car. They bade Wayne good night and drove home before their tired bodies forced them to sleep.
With Peter and Leonard as their guides, they visited the surviving graves of Knights of the Round Table. As Arturia stepped into the Armstrong family crypt, she noted that Bedivere's was well maintained compared to the weather stained graves of the other knights. The inscription on the stone tomb that protected her remains was still legible. A faint color caught her eye and she blew away the dust over the tomb.
"I see... you've kept it until the end." Her fingers gently touched the red stud earring embedded into the stone. She gave it to Bedivere before she got married. Since then, she had never seen her without them. She laid the bouquet of lilies near the earring and prayed for her happiness in heaven.
Her heart was filled with a mixture of loneliness and loss as she visited each tomb or grave. However, she had to steel her heart as soon as Jenna met them. She would lead them to the Lakeridge crypt.
Their tombs were next to each other, close but not touching. She placed flowers on top of each tomb, clasped her hands together and prayed that they were reunited in heaven.
During her research, Rin read all the versions of the affair between Guinevere and Lancelot. All of the stories failed to explain the sense of sadness surrounding Arturia. She wanted to hear the truth, but after seeing Arturia praying next to the tombs, she decided that it was best to leave it as a story.
By the evening of the second day, they visited the last grave. Leonard drove them home. He dropped them off and bid them good night. Upon entering the house, they collapsed on the loveseat. With a flick of her hand, Rin positioned the footstools in front of them and they rested their tired feet on top.
Rin cradled Arturia's hand. "Jenna told me that you declined to be king."
"I'm not fit the way I am right now. And perhaps, don't you think that the dream is more real than the truth? So let them dream of their own Camelots and it is my hope that their dream shall come true. Besides, a part of me wanted to relive my life." She rested her head on her shoulder. "Right now, I am no king. Just your Arturia."
At that moment, Rin made a silent promise. "If you ever decide to be king once more, I will protect your heart, so you will never have to experience such a sad story ever again." She put her arm around her and silently cast Strength of a Thousand. Arturia let out a surprised yelp as she lifted her off the loveseat. "That's right. And as your Rin, I should take care of you. It's time for bed."
"Wait... pick up that bag over there."
Rin did as she was told and noticed its contents. It looked like a costume of some sort. She gulped. "Let me guess..."
Arturia grinned evilly. "I wore that lion costume all day, you know."
Trapped, Rin made a mock grimace as she walked to their bedroom. But in her heart, she was excited for the opportunity to make another happy memory together.
References
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight