.
King Arthur's Knights
Book 3: Of Kings and Princes
Act 1: The Loophole
Soredamer's Clique
I look back on our early days together, still in Worcestershire, and I wish so much that things hadn't happened like they had. I wish I'd never hated them and that they'd never hated me. I wish we had had the guts to just be who we really were deep inside. In Worcestershire, everyone hid. Hid behind labels, hid behind reputation, hid for fear, hid for love, hid for uncertainty… There is so much that could have been avoided if we'd just been true to ourselves. But then maybe if things had gone differently, we wouldn't have come together. Of course maybe that would have been better in the long run… Maybe then they wouldn't be gone…
Past
"So Unc, any particular reason you're hanging around me instead of getting to know your nephews?" Soredamor questioned Arthur, who'd attached himself to her not long ago for who knew what reason. Not that she was complaining. It was about time she got to spend some quality time with him. Even back when he'd been a nobody she'd kind of pitied him and had wanted to try and reach out, but to do so would've been social suicide. Yeah it was selfish, but in Worcestershire you couldn't really afford to be an outcast or a loner. For a long time, the unspoken policy had been to stomp out the weak so the strong could thrive. All the way up until Pellinore took over the role of principal it had been dog eat dog. If you were alone with no one to lean on or back you up? Enough said. As much as she would've liked to offer him someone to lean on, it wasn't worth the risk. He was the jousting team's favorite target, and when those wolves sank their teeth into a kill? Gods help anyone who tried to take it away.
She glanced over at her uncle, waiting for his response. Now she had an excuse to reach out to him. He was her blood relative and the king, so this time she had padding for when she went in to snatch away the jousting team's chew toy. Arthur hadn't seemed to have heard her. "Unc?" she repeated.
"Huh? Oh, no, just… just wanted to spend a bit of time with you. I already know your brothers better than I ever wanted to," Arthur replied, snapping out of his thoughts and grimacing. He frowned. "And please don't call me Unc or Uncle."
"Get used to it, Unc," she teased, grinning and gently nudging him. He grimaced then smiled hopelessly, shaking his head. "You and Gawain seem to get along," she pointed out a bit cautiously. She couldn't say she was surprised. Yeah Gawain was Lancelot's right-hand man, and more often than not he was right at the guy's side even during Lance's meanest moments, but despite appearances and the occasional enforcing remark, he was nothing like him. You were honestly hard pressed to find two more opposite temperaments. It would only have been a matter of time before Gawain had reached out to Arthur, even if the whole king thing hadn't happened.
"Yeah… But Gawain's always with Lancelot and me and Lance don't get along," Arthur replied. "Why does your brother even hang out with that creep? The more I talk to him the more unlikely it seems. I mean Lancelot's a total jerk, and Gawain… I don't even know what to make of him anymore. I always thought he was one of Lance's yes-men then all of this happened and just… I guess it's complicated with me and him right now. I don't like not knowing where people stand. It freaks me out. I mean Lance is this violent loser, and as it turns out, Gawain isn't. Which believe me, was news to me."
"He's… good at blending in," Soredamer replied, thinking over her choice of words. That was about the best she could come up with. "Gawain's always been good at making you think he's one thing while actually being the total opposite. Believe it or not, it's only in the last year or so that he's begun to show off the kind of person he really is."
"Why?" Arthur asked.
"I guess… maybe he just got tired of living a lie?" Soredamer answered. "I remember once when Lancelot got his hands on Degore after something… not okay that Degore said to him. Lance pinned the guy down after school in the ruins, along with the rest of the jousting team, and they laid a beatdown on him that he won't ever forget. Tristan notwithstanding. He kind of just stood back and watched with Bedivere. Neither of them were overly impressed. Anyway, the jocks left him bloodied, bruised, and drifting in and out of consciousness… I think that maybe that's when things changed for Gawain… I think that's when he stopped being just the goon at Lancelot's right hand. He was guilt-stricken. He didn't help Degore, but he didn't really attack him either. He didn't goad Lancelot on or encourage him, and where Tristan and Bedivere just turned a blind eye yet again, Gawain only followed the others far enough away from the scene to alleviate suspicion before going back for Degore. He cleaned him up and tended him until he was strong enough for my brother to feel comfortable moving him back to the campus for first aid. I guess seeing how badly they'd hurt Degore finally forced him to stop turning a blind eye to things. Forced him to start to show more of himself and who he was."
"Bet Lancelot was pleased," Arthur bitterly and sarcastically remarked, rolling his eyes.
She giggled. "You should have heard the screaming match those two had after the fact. Lancelot and the others saw Gawain helping Degore back. They were totally bowled over. They didn't even know what to think. Gawain paused only long enough to glare at them and make sure they didn't try to come after him and Degore, then headed on without even saying a word to any of them. Not even when Lancelot called him. I'm pretty sure Tristan was shamed into leaving when he witnessed that, because it was only like three seconds before he just turned and walked away from the others with his head hung. Bedivere stuck around, but he seemed really, really uncomfortable. And Bohort? Poor Bors was guilted so badly that he started to cry and quickly shuffled off to hide so no one would see. I have a suspicion that's when he started his turnaround too. You know, from yes-man to individual."
Her smile fell and she looked a bit more solemn. Arthur paused, looking concerned. "Sora?" he asked.
She was quiet, thinking, then looked solemnly at him. "When Gawain came back out, Lancelot confronted him and they got into an argument that escalated until the others left them screaming at each other. Gawain told Lancelot that that was who he was, and if Lance didn't like it then he should just be done with him. He told Lance he was through enabling him. Lancelot tried to threaten him. That's when he told Lancelot he wasn't scared of him and never had been. That he'd stuck around because he'd dared try and believe there was some good in him and had wanted to help bring it out. He said that he still believed there was good in him, and even if Lance cast him out he wouldn't stop believing as much. He said that sticking around obviously wasn't helping either one of them. Lancelot was only dragging him down, he wasn't lifting Lancelot up, and my brother felt so guilty about that. Like he'd failed in the worst way. He even apologized to Lance, Artie. Apologized to him. For not being good enough to help him! Then he told him he'd be there for him still, and if Lance ever needed him he knew where to find him. He just wouldn't be hanging out with him regularly anymore. He couldn't because he felt it was just making Lance worse and it was definitely a bad influence on him too. Then he left Lancelot absolutely livid, shouting and roaring after him… But I don't think it was really anger… I think the anger was a mask for heartbreak and devastation. Not like heartbreak when you dump somebody or get dumped, but heartbreak even worse. Like you've just lost the best and only true friend you ever had, and you don't know if you'll ever get him back. It absolutely wrecked Lancelot… I know because it wrecked my brother too…"
Lancelot had actually toned things down a fair bit after that, she noted to herself. She guessed the break had been good for her brother and the big man on campus. Arthur was quiet. He wasn't sure what to say. Part of him felt like Lancelot totally deserved it and cheered Gawain for his stepping up… Another part he'd rather not acknowledge felt kind of sorry for the both of them…
"Anyway, enough of that depressing crap. So, if you're not up to hanging with my brothers—and by brothers I mean Gawain, because it's obvious you'd rather be anywhere but where the rest of them are—then what about your friends?" Soredamor asked.
"Maybe friends," Arthur corrected, shutting down a bit at having them directly called friends. Sure he guessed he considered them that, kind of, but having someone else say it made it seem too good to be true, and thus untrustworthy. Yeah, he had issues with the 'f' word. Soredamer smirked, rolling her eyes. "Balin and Balan are hotboxing, Alymere and Dagonet are off playing pranks and probably getting themselves beat up, Dinadan is off flirting with everything on two legs, no clue where Kay or Cador are, Degore is with Lucan, Bedivere, and Griflet, and honestly I have no honest idea where I stand with Lucan and Bedivere at this point anyway. Griflet and Degore and me get along pretty well, but it's sort of tougher to tell with Lucan and Bedivere. Not sure if Bedivere genuinely likes me or just tolerates me because I'm Kay's brother. And Lucan? Enough said," Arthur replied.
"Yeah. He's not really one to open up very easily," Soredamor said. "Like you." Arthur pretended not to hear that. "What about Brunor and Daniel?"
"Brunor's a jock, pretty sure the only reason he didn't hone in on me at the castle was because his brothers were there, and it was my home turf anyway. And Daniel? Uh, I kind of forgot all about him," Arthur sheepishly replied. "But-but he's probably with Sagramore!"
"Not if Sagramore's with the jocks he's not," Soredamor replied. "Why don't you look for him? Maybe Cador and Kay too. We can all hang out. Unless you want it to just be you and a bunch of girls you don't know. And my guy. And maybe some of their guys."
"Well, I do have to start looking for potential queen's," Arthur replied, smirking jokingly.
"'Gwen, oh Gwen, I've always loved you'," Soredamor quoted dramatically, hand to the forehead and all. Arthur went bright red. She laughed, lowering her hand. "You've chosen your queen, Artie."
"Yeah, well that means crap all if she doesn't like me back," Arthur grumbled, a bit put out now.
"Okay, okay, dropping the topic. But seriously. Daniel could use the attention," Soredamor said. "Or, since we're meeting up with my girlfriends and my Greek fiancé, you could just try and get along with said fiancé."
"Who is said fiancé?" Arthur asked, frowning to hear his niece was engaged. Chalk another one up to the family record. Seriously, was Cador the only one of them who'd had sense? Well, Uther aside he guessed.
"He's the Byzantine Emperor Alexander," Soredamor answered. "You know, Greek King, part of the student council?"
"Oh, him," Arthur replied, grimacing. He wasn't big on that idea. Alisander could care less about him, he knew. "I mean… I guess I could find Daniel, but I'm not sure where I stand with him either."
"Grab him and see. You'll never know if you don't give people a chance, Arthur. Oh, Morgan might show up with Accolon of Gaul. You know, the guy she's totally cheating on her husband for?" Soredamor said.
"Like I wanna encourage Morgan's disloyalty," Arthur replied, grimacing. "I'm no friend of Uriens', but that's low. Of course, he cheated on her after, so…"
"Maybe your presence will force Accolon to behave," Soredamor teased. "Yvain and Ywain will probably be tagging along with her for a bit before their classes start, so hey, the pool of people you know that'll be there is growing at least. Anyway, little Yvain could probably use the buffer between him and Morgan, the poor thing. Bigger crowd than you're used to, most of them people you don't know that great, but having Daniel along might help you and him both deal with it. Not sure how well you'd fare leaping feet first into a pile of people you barely know, say for a couple, without some kind of backup."
"Okay, okay, we can check the library and see if Daniel's there," Arthur relented.
"Great," Soredamor said. "Wouldn't kill you to learn that reaching out to people doesn't always backfire anyway."
"Not you too," Arthur groaned.
"You're like the anti-socialite of the whole school," she poked, grinning. "Everyone thinks so. Time to prove them wrong. Like you've been proving them wrong about your being useless."
"You made your point," he grumbled.
"Good. Mission accomplished," she answered.
KAK
Arthur and Soredamer approached the library and entered it quietly, looking around. Daniel was nowhere to be seen, but this building was large. Soredamer prompted Arthur to start searching. Arthur grimaced but nodded, leaving his niece by the door while scouting out the library. He found Daniel buried in the far back by himself, reading through a tome looking a little… alone, for lack of better word. Like, he wasn't happy but wasn't unhappy? Just… the guy was alone and looked like he was feeling it too. Like it was bothering him, but not depressing him? It was hard to explain.
"Uh h-hey, um, D-Daniel?" Arthur said, attempting to be confident and failing epically.
Daniel glanced quickly up and looked puzzled to see Arthur there. "Uh, Arthur?" Daniel replied. "Hi?"
"Uh, hi… So… Crazy couple weeks, huh?" Arthur awkwardly said.
Daniel stared at him dubiously, trying to figure out what he was doing here. Finally, he closed his book, silently reading the king. "Yeah. I guess," he eventually, cautiously, answered.
There was a long, uncomfortable silence between them that dragged on too long. "Um… wanna hang out with me and my niece and some of her friends?" Arthur soon asked, flushing and looking down.
Daniel was quiet, staring. "You… want to hang out? With me?" he soon replied.
Arthur shifted uneasily and took a breath. "Yeah," he answered, looking up at Daniel again.
Daniel stared. "Uh… okay? Y-yeah, yeah sure. Let's-let's hang out," he said, standing up though still seeming a bit guarded and uncertain of what to make of this.
"Okay," Arthur said, perking up a bit.
"Okay," Daniel said. Another awkward pause. "Lead the way," Daniel finally said.
"Oh! Yeah, right, that. Um, come on," Arthur said, heading off. Daniel came up alongside him, following curiously.
"Hi Daniel," Soredamer greeted as they approached her, smiling at him.
"Uh, hey," Daniel murmured, glancing shyly down.
"So, we ready?" she asked, looking them both over.
"Yeah. Guess so," Arthur replied. Daniel nodded.
"Great! Let's go before they figure we're not coming," Soredamor said, heading cheerily off. Arthur and Daniel exchanged uneasy looks and followed.
KAK
So, there they were. Hanging with Soredamer and her friends. Yep. Nothing awkward about it at all. "Your uncle bring his own date?" Alisander asked, staring at Daniel and Arthur. Daniel and Arthur both flushed.
"Behave," Soredamor chastised, frowning at him.
"Hey, sorry. Just kidding," Alexander said, putting up his hands in surrender.
"How about we not pretend we're the jousting team, huh?" a boy that looked kind of edgy goth said as he approached, frowning at Alexander. Arthur was torn on whether to be appalled at the sleeveless dark shirt, or impressed the guy actually pulled it off. The boy turned to Arthur and Daniel. "Soredamer didn't mention we'd have… extras. Hey. I'm Accolon of Gaul."
"Oh, I know," Arthur replied, frowning at him. "Morgan can't stop boasting up how she plays you and Uriens for saps. Boy toys. Whichever term you'd prefer." Accolon winced, glancing away and flushing a bit.
"Never mind him. We're pleased to meet you," Daniel said.
"Doesn't seem like it," Accolon answered slightly begrudgingly, though the glance he gave Arthur looked... guilty. "Might want to speak for yourself instead of the both of you… guy."
"Daniel," Daniel murmured, blushing and bowing his head sheepishly.
"What, you expected a slap on the back?" Arthur asked Accolon.
"Behave," Soredamor hissed at Arthur. "If this is how you acted before, no wonder you didn't have friends."
"Sorry," Arthur said, looking kind of cowed. He turned to Accolon. "Sorry," he repeated again. "I just…"
"Aren't exactly impressed with me," Accolon said. "Yeah… Guess I can understand that. I mean, your brother-in-law…"
"I don't even like my brother-in-law, and he definitely doesn't like me. This is more an honor thing. You know full well what you did to my sister," Arthur said, glaring at Accolon.
Accolon frowned, looking like he was going to get defensive, then backed off. Arthur made a point. "I never wanted… to dishonor her. It just happened," he defended.
"Universal sob story. It's not an excuse," Arthur flatly said.
"What, you think Uriens even loves her?" Accolon snapped.
"You know, that would be a really great question to ask Uriens," Arthur said slightly sarcastically. "But fine. I'll play devil's advocate. What has she told you that makes you say that? Because gods forbid she tell me anything. Seriously. I want to know. I'm just looking for a reason to hate the guy for more than the fact he's trying to war against me." Was Uriens abusing his sister or hurting her? That would be reason to hate him!
"She hasn't told me much either. Just that he doesn't love her," Accolon replied. "And she says she knows he doesn't for a fact. When I pressed, she just told me to trust her and I did, because that's what you do when you love someone."
"You don't trust someone to blindness," Daniel said. Accolon looked over at him like he'd forgotten Daniel was here. He probably had. "I mean… you trust within reason. If you trust them too much, then-then you're, I don't know, kind of an idiot, aren't you?" Accolon looked a little troubled and shifted. He seemed about to reply, but just then Morgan came around the corner with Ywain and Yvain at her side, both of which were looking excited. Kay also was there. Arthur smiled at him, visibly relaxing to see his big brother was near. Kay looked startled, then pleasantly surprised Arthur was being, well, social for lack of a better word.
"Hi kiddies," Accolon said, smiling at the two boys.
"At least you acknowledge Yvain," Arthur mumbled to him, hiding his mouth by sipping from water so Morgan couldn't see. Accolon nodded. He honestly kind of hoped that his acknowledging Yvain would drive Morgan to acknowledge him more.
"We're not kitties!" Ywain protested.
"Kiddies," Accolon replied. "Kids, not cats."
"Oh… We're not kids!" Ywain said.
"Are you teenagers? Are you adults?" Kay asked. Ywain was silent. "Then you're kids. Actually, you're closer to toddlers." Ywain stuck out his tongue. "Someone's in a bad mood," Kay remarked, smirking meanly. Ywain pouted, folding his arms and glaring down at the ground in agitation.
"Kids are baby goats," Yvain practically said, hands behind his back as he looked proudly and stubbornly up at Kay.
"Alright. Babies it is," Kay teased.
"Hi Ywain. I-I don't think you and I have ever got to really talk a lot. I mean first there was that whole awkward thing when your dad was, you know, trying to siege Worcestershire, then Morgan spirited you away pretty quick, then all the drama at the palace… Yeah, I've probably spent more time with Yvain than with you," Arthur said, trying for conversation. Morgan shot her brother a glare and went in for a kiss from Accolon, who looked about to oblige but then caught Arthur's glare. He turned his face away last minute, letting her lips fall on his cheek instead of on his mouth. She frowned, unimpressed at this, and gave her sibling a glare. Arthur ignored it, inwardly praising Accolon's restraint.
Ywain looked up at Arthur curiously. "Mama talks about you… Why do you never visit me here at school so I can get to know you?" he questioned Arthur.
"I… I don't know," Arthur admitted, blushing ashamedly. "I'll try to hang out with you more, okay? And have you guys all visit Far Far Away more."
Immediately Ywain lit up, beaming excitedly. "Oh wow, that's so cool! Your palace is so amazing!"
Arthur blinked then grinned proudly. Huh, he liked this nephew. "You bet it is," Arthur replied, winking at Ywain.
"Wow! Do you have lots of knights? I only saw a few and we like knocked them all out, but then you knighted Griflet and he's good at fighting. Ooh, can I be a knight too like Griflet?!" Ywain asked.
"Uh, a-a knight?" Arthur asked, flustered by the question. Uh oh. "Um m-maybe when you're older?"
"I'm old enough!" Ywain protested.
"No, you're not," Morgan firmly stated.
"Easy, Ywain, save the questions for later. You have the rest of your life to get to know your uncle," Alexander said, smirking at the boy affectionately. The kid was lazy, most of the time, but when he got excited he got excited.
"I don't," Yvain sadly said. "Mama… Ywain's mama… says he's not my uncle because I'm not hers." He gave a woeful look to Morgan, who sighed and glanced away.
"Hey, don't get down on yourself, Yvain. I told you, as far as I'm concerned, you're as much my nephew as Ywain. No matter what Morgan says," Arthur, immediately sympathetic, said, glaring accusingly at his sister. Morgan scoffed. Yvain looked hopefully at him. Arthur smiled. He had heard about what Yvain was called behind closed doors. The Bastard of Cavaliot, or some other such cold term. He hated that his nephew had to go through that… He knew what it was like…
"How on earth did Uriens conceive two such good kids?" Alisander wondered, warming up to the two little boys a bit.
"Alexander, not in front of them. That's their father you're talking about," Soredamor chastised, frowning.
"Who forced my sister into a marriage!" Arthur protested.
"It was unwilling, but it wasn't him who forced me into it. He was just as forced," Morgan remarked with a slight blush. She just had this sudden unshakable urge to defend her husband, and she vehemently tried to deny it was there, but it was. She couldn't ignore it.
"And believe it or not they've gotten better," Soredamer added. "A bit, that is. I mean, she actually defended him just now." Accolon gave Morgan an accusing glare.
Morgan glared warningly at Soredamer. Soredamer tensed and immediately bit her tongue. Morgan turned back to Accolon. "We haven't gotten that much better," she said to him, putting on an innocent smile.
Accolon relaxed slightly. "Well, I guess it wasn't all bad with him. After all, you have this cool little guy to show for it now," he said, teasingly pushing Ywain.
"Hey!" Ywain protested against Accolon's pushing.
Kay and Arthur both gave Accolon incredulous looks. Accolon winced and pretended he hadn't seen. "Cool? You mean lazy and rude, of course? Kid's as much a creep as his father was," Kay said. Ywain shot at dirty look at Kay and stuck out his tongue.
"Methinks he gets that from you," Arthur teased his foster brother.
"Oh please. Not even blood-related to the brat," Kay answered.
"He certainly picked up your habits well enough," Arthur bit. Kay frowned.
"Sure they weren't Uriens's habits?" Alisander asked, rolling his eyes.
Yvain looked down, feeling sad. Why did everybody seem to not like his daddy? "Hey kiddo, don't worry about it, okay?" Accolon, noting the child's distress, said, kneeling down to him and hugging him lightly. "You're as much a part of Arthur's family as Ywain."
"I'm not sad about that!" Yvain insisted. "I'm sad because I don't understand why they all don't like daddy!"
"Because your dad is a piece of work?" Kay asked.
"No he isn't! Daddy is good and brave and not mean! He isn't!" Yvain insisted.
"Yvain, enough. They don't know," a new voice said, and all of them spun, catching their breath with eyes widening in shock. Say for Morgan, who looked like she'd seen this coming.
"Uriens!" they all exclaimed together. Sure enough, there stood the young king with a rucksack over his shoulder.
"Did I forget to mention this is one of his and Nentres' days on? My mistake," Morgan said. They glared at her then turned to Uriens again, looking a little nervous.
"Uncle Uriens, hey!" Soredamor chirped, forcing an awkward and embarrassed grin.
"Don't call me that," Uriens pled, rolling his eyes.
"You're not here to kill me, right?" Arthur bluntly asked, not even trying for cordiality.
"Oh, if I get the chance I will, make no mistake," Uriens answered, but his tone lacked bite. In fact, he looked a little defeated and tired… Maybe even a bit hurt…
"Oh, uh, g-guess you heard? Um, how much, exactly, did you hear?" Accolon awkwardly questioned, losing his poise. Uriens flipped him the bird and said nothing. Accolon winced. "Right… Of course. Probably everything."
"Who cares whether he heard it all or not? He knows where he sits on the likability scale here. There's nothing we could possibly learn about the diva that would change that," Kay said, ready to go for his sword the minute the guy made any sort of move against Arthur at all.
"You know what, Kay? Little known fact, but people actually grow up!" Uriens snapped sharper than he'd intended to, but he didn't back down. "And believe it or not, I grew up quick after my father died and I had to take the throne."
"How so?" Kay challenged.
Uriens was quiet. Finally, he sighed and answered, "Look, I get you don't like me, none of you, but it's none of your business what happened back then." Yvain looked a little crestfallen that his father wasn't going to stand up for himself, and Ywain looked a bit disappointed too. Uriens winced at the looks on the faces of his sons, then sighed. "Fine. I'll tell you," he finally, and slightly bitterly, relented. His sons perked up and listened in rapt attention along with the others.