Gossamer: Author's Note & Prologue

Author's Note:

Greetings, Merlin fans! Yes, it's true; I've started a Lady of the Lake story. This is just some information prior to the story that's not life-or-death-you-MUST-read-it, but it would help both you and I if you did. :) It explains a bit about the story before you read it and some information about why I came up with certain ideas. So, any avid fans of the Arthurian legend probably watched episode 2x08 of Merlin and looked at their TVs with an expression quite like this:

O.O

…Wow.

It reminded me more of Elaine of Astolat, to be honest. You know, with the boat bit and all… I was actually really confused until the excuse they gave me in the series 3 finale.

Anyway, I did some more research on the Lady of the Lake, and wrote a story based on my findings. (Slight AU, so bear with me on this one!) The Lady of the Lake is part of a legend with so many different tellings and aspects of it that it would be nearly impossible to fit it all into one story. (Some even have Morgana as The Lady!) But I am determined to do my best to fit as many parts of the legend into this story, even if most of them will appear incognito. This story is set after series 3, although we're going to disregard Merlin's placement of Excalibur in the stone and we're gonna say he just threw it back in the lake, deal? And Freya is obviously not The Lady in this story.

This tale features a young woman named Lena, who is, of course, The Lady. In most legends, her name is either a variation of Nimueh or Vivian, but they've used both names in Merlin already, haven't they? But I read that in some legends, Merlin was said to have a wife by the name of Gwendoloena. Obviously I can't call her Gwen, so I just took four other letters out of that name. No, I'm kidding, but it made more sense than having another woman named Vivian/Nimueh/Gwen. Lena's father's name will be Dyonas, which is The Lady's father's name in certain legends. When he is her father, she really is a lady of the court, but I've already done that. (Every Rose Has Its Thorn, anyone?)

Now, in some legends, The Lady is evil personified. She seduces Merlin and traps him in a cave, tree, or sometimes, an invisible tower. However, there is a poem which gave me inspiration for this story up the wazoo. It is called Merlin (real original, right?) and it's by Edwin Arlington Robinson. You should definitely look it up if you have some spare time, it's really quite good. (Part V was the most helpful to me.) In this poem, The Lady (here she is Viviane) is not an evil woman; instead she is a beautiful maiden whom Merlin truly loves and would do anything for, which includes him leaving Arthur and going away to Broceliande with Vivian. Here, Lena is not truly evil, just a conflicted woman. Oh, and sometimes, The Lady is the lover of Pelles, the Fisher King, but if you all remember, he was the old dude that Merlin killed (kindly) in series 3. So, yeah, I'm kind of completely forgetting that bit.

...That was him, right?

Anyway, this story is really an inner dark vs. light battle that I think is pretty common, but hopefully can be pulled off once more. Lena's destiny is to trap Merlin, and to be the death of him, but she wants to escape that… or at least she thinks she does. When it begins, Lena is rather Guinevere-like, I suppose you could say. Family-based, nice, sort of shy, and has a relaxed crush on Merlin. It's nothing serious until her destiny comes into play. As the story goes on, you see her becoming darker and darker, and people around her begin to notice this change… it is sort of like Morgana in series 2, in all truth.

I have to be honest with you all right now. In most of my stories, the characters usually stay the same the whole time. If they're sweet, they stay sweet. If they're bitter… well, I suppose you get the point. They might have some sort of epiphany, but this is my first time writing a character that goes through such a change over the course of the story, so if you're reading and there's something you think I could improve on involving this I welcome your opinion. I'm truly quite nervous about this.

So, people who have gotten this far, if you read on, I'd be most obliged, and if you reviewed… well, I'd be ecstatic. So, future readers of this story, I hope you enjoy!

~The DarkAngel

Prologue: Over From The Start

Lena looked at her reflection in the hand mirror, scrutinizing her appearance. She was not a vain creature, for one's looks was usually the last thing on one's mind when working on a farm.

But we're not on a farm anymore, Lena reminded herself. Her mother, Bethany, had passed away a few years back, and it seemed as though Lena's father's good fortune and healthy crops had died with her. So Dyonas, who was a father to the nineteen-year-old Lena, the twelve-year-old Adam, and the nine-year-old Olive, had packed up their belongings and moved their family to the kingdom of Camelot.

Dyonas hoped to become a blacksmith, as he had heard that the kingdom was in need of one. He planned to teach Adam his craft so that his son could one day take his place in the world. As for his daughters, well, he was sure Camelot could use two more seamstresses, even though Olive was somewhat underage.

Although being a seamstress (or a maidservant, if it came down to that) was not what Lena would have chosen for herself, she knew she had to find a way to make money. Olive was still too young, and although she would grow, the family needed money right then.

This was the reason for Lena's early-morning conflict. Should she wear her hair up or down? She had only two dresses; which would look better? Normally Lena would not have troubled herself with such trivial matters, but she was going with her father and siblings that morning to seek an audience with the king, and the family could not afford to make a bad impression on the court. Lena doubted that whether her hair was in a ponytail or a braid would make much of a difference, but if the king accepted her family, they would be given a house and possible futures in Camelot. Lena smiled at the thought. All her family had at the moment were a few bags with their possessions and two sickly horses.

Lena's dream was to change that. She wanted to change all of that. Her moss-green eyes shone with hope as she pushed her brown hair onto one shoulder. She supposed she looked all right, at least by her standards… she was just worried that the king would have other ideas. Now, about Olive…

"Lena!" As if on cue, the energetic child came sprinting over to where Lena was putting away her hand mirror. She treasured that hand mirror, for it was a family heirloom that she had been given by her mother on the eve of her sixteenth birthday.

"Father says we're going to see the inside of a castle," Olive chattered away happily. Lena smiled lovingly at her sister, and let her talk. "Do you think we might be able to see real jewels?" At this, Lena's smile grew. She knew Olive had a certain infatuation with jewels, especially the dark, richly colored ones.

Looking off into the distance, Lena saw the castle, which appeared to be sparkling, and she couldn't figure if it was her imagination or a trick of the light.

"Judging by that, yes, Olive," the older girl answered. Olive grinned.

"Do I look all right, Lena?" she inquired.

"You look beautiful, love. Just like Mother." Lena sometimes envied Olive, since the younger girl did resemble their mother in many ways. Olive had their mother's blue eyes and light brown hair, whist Lena resembled their father a bit more. Adam was a perfect mix of their mother and father, as far as Lena was concerned. He had their father's messy black hair and their mother's blue eyes that were much like Olive's.

Lena stole one last glance at herself in her hand mirror. She wrapped it carefully in cloth, placed it in her satchel, and continued listening to Olive talk.

Yes, Lena mused, I can change our lives for the better here. For Olive, for Adam, for my father… and for my mother. I am sure it is what she would have wanted me to do. Yes, we are in Camelot now, and it is time for a change.

A/N: One last thing. I am looking for a beta for this story, so if you're interested in proofreading the remainder of this fic, please message me or tell me in your REVIEW!