Just so everyone's aware, I'm basically making up a timeline that fits remotely with my version of events, so the first four episodes all happen within the space of a month. It's going to turn into a Gwaine fanfic later on but at the moment Leon demands all the attention, just because a) Gwaine isn't here yet and 2) he is technically Anna's best mate.

This one's for dragonbook87, who gave me my first ever review on this fanfic. *showers person with love*.

In addition, series 1 overall is for MaxR, who literally made me squeal with happiness when I read their review.

Enjoy lovely readers and feel free to leave reviews!

I missed Lady Helen's performance three days later and according to Merlin it was a good thing I had, considering she had attempted to avenge her dead son by taking Uther's. Of course, I'm actually talking about Mary Collins, because she had killed the real Lady Helen. The real reason I was glad I hadn't been there was because I couldn't guarantee that I wouldn't have tried to help her.

Instead, I had spent most of the last three days tending Leon, who had picked up some sort of infection and was running a fever on and off. He hadn't been sick, thank goodness, because I don't do vomit, but he'd been too ill to even recognise me. I never actually knew whether he knew it was me but the fact he called me 'mama' whenever I was around persuaded me that he was entirely delirious.

He spent a lot of his time drifting in and out of sleep, alternating between barely sane mutterings and dreamy murmurs. Normally Leon doesn't talk in his sleep but when he does it's obvious as to what he's dreaming about. The fact I heard my own name more than once made me curious about the details of those particular dreams. I decided against asking, considering he probably wouldn't remember a thing when he recovered.

With dutiful attention, I nursed the knight back to some form of health, just in time for Uther to announce that the knights' tournament was starting the next day. That night, Merlin looked absolutely terrified and kind of irritated because the only consequence from saving Arthur's life was that he was now the Royal Manservant, which sounds very undignified but is actually a prominent and surprisingly influential position in the household. When I went to check on Leon the next day, after my first proper nights' sleep in about a week and a half, he didn't look much happier than my new roommate.

"You want to talk?" I asked him, sitting down cross-legged on the bed (unlike most women in the city, I opt for trousers and boots, which I wasn't wearing then, instead of a skirt and light shoes) and taking his good hand in both of mine. He just sighed and looked away, out of the window.

"I remember dreaming of my mother," he said quietly and after a long silence. I just held his hand a little tighter: I knew why his mother was a raw subject for him. She'd been murdered by bandits just before he had become a knight and it was that which had spurred him on, and still did.

Of course, I understood his pain. Gaius was the only parent I'd ever had and, as hard as he'd tried, he'd never really been sufficient. I'd missed my father for all my life and the only person I had to blame was the very man who paid my pittance of a weekly wage.

I'd been prepared for a few things to follow that statement, but not the silent sobbing. Leon was the kind of man who kept his emotions bottled up and only let himself feel them when he was alone, so such a display was unusual from him. But he needed someone so I moved to sit next to him and let him rest his head on my shoulder and cry. It was what he needed and judging from the frequency of the word 'mama' when he'd slept, those dreams had been persistent.

"Thank you," he whispered after quite a few minutes. I just smiled gently and rubbed his shoulder comfortingly, telling him without words that he was worth every effort and that I would always be there for him when he needed me. "You too," he replied softly, resting himself against me so that he was more comfortable. I just giggled.

"More sleep?" I asked him teasingly but he just nodded and passed out without another word. I just sighed and settled him down, leaving him alone to sleep off the last remnants of the fever.

When I got in, it was to hear Merlin complaining to Gaius that Arthur had basically beaten him up in practise today. I giggled and sat him down, getting to work on him like I was used to doing when any of the knights straining or pulled something. It took about a minute to shut Merlin up and within five he was slumped over the table, limp but conscious and very content.

"Where did you learn to do that?" he asked, dragging himself into an upright position and starting on his soup. I sat down opposite and answered by pointing at Gaius. Merlin cocked an eyebrow at the elderly physician, who sighed deeply but not seriously.

"When there's two men going at each other like hammer and tongs, one of them invariably ends up in a similar condition to yours, only much worse," he replied like it was obvious. That was how Gaius often spoke but he wasn't too patronising about it.

"Plus, it's a proven fact that men are more comfortable around a female doctor when they're ill or injured," I added brightly, already halfway through my soup: working with emotional patients always gave me a huge appetite, especially when it was someone as reserved as Leon. "Leon's fever has broken but he's not had the best time of it," I said quickly to Gaius as he sat down next to Merlin with his own soup.

"Family?" he asked me and when I nodded he sighed deeply, this time in pity. I felt exactly the same way.

To my surprise, when I went back the next morning, Leon was sat, in shirt and breeches, on the window seat, watching the other knights train out of the window. He didn't notice me at first but when I cleared my throat he turned, taken by surprise and instinctively reaching for a weapon. He smiled at me but it was a sad smile.

"You wish you were down there?" I asked but we both knew it wasn't really a question.

"I suppose," he replied, which confused me but I decided against pushing him because he didn't look exactly happy.

We watched the day's tournament from Leon's window, commenting on the knights' fighting styles and who won and lost. A knight in yellow caught my attention: he was vicious and violent but from where we were I couldn't tell how accurate his technique was. I watched Arthur's fight closely and I was surprised to see significant improvement.

"Does Arthur always fight as badly as he did against me?" I asked quietly after Arthur beat the hell out of his opponent.

"Not always," Leon replied quietly, focusing on the next pair to be fighting, both unfamiliar to us: it was his way of dealing with the frustration of not being about fight himself. "I think he was testing you, seeing just how good you are. Normally, he's actually not half-bad but he looks better than usual today."

"Maybe Uther's had him taking a crash course," I snickered, thinking of Uther's horror if his son was beaten in front of the entire kingdom. Thinking like that made me frown: Arthur had a surprising amount of pressure on him and I resolved to be slightly nicer in future. Only slightly, mind, at least until his attitude towards those beneath him improved.

When the day's matches were over, we went outside, taking care to avoid the citizens. Most people didn't know it but the knights' training grounds had a small door on the east corner that was never locked and as young teenagers we used to escape that way all the time. It opened directly into the forest and so we were essentially free when we were gone.

In actual fact, we'd first met out here. Leon had been thirteen and had decided climbing a tree to see Camelot would be a good idea, not thinking about how slippery the bark would be after two days of solid rain. He fell from a fair way up but luckily for him I was out collecting herbs and I heard him crying, which can't be blamed when you consider he'd broken a rib and his shoulder. Actually, it was a wonder he hadn't broken his neck.

The second time we'd met had been about a week after the news came that his mother had been killed. That was an interesting day but after that we'd been firm friends.

Leon was the only person besides Gaius who knew I was capable of using magic. He kept it to himself though, knowing that I only ever used it for healing, and even that was a very rare occasion: usually my physician skills served me well enough that I didn't resort to using magic. I was eternally grateful for his silence, knowing if Uther found out Leon had known the knight would be accused of treason. He was risking his head for me but he didn't mind doing it. In turn, I supported him and helped him whenever he needed it. It was a win-win situation, especially considering we enjoyed each other's company.

We down to the river and I amused myself by singing naiad-songs under my breath. Leon didn't notice or if he did he either didn't mind or was too fascinated to protest, because it seemed like all of nature sang with me, which wasn't far off the truth actually. When I finished, he picked up where I left off and sang old nursery rhymes under his breath. Leon is by no means a Lady Helen but he is very good, especially when he sings quietly. He just sounds very melancholy and husky, which is both enchanting and oddly attractive.

"Good evening!" a delighted and surprised feminine voice said. We were both started from our thoughts and looked up to see a long-standing close friend.

Guinevere was a very good friend of mine and Leon's, the lady-in-waiting to Lady Morgana, the king's ward. She had skin the colour of stone in the dark, curly hair like bark and very bright easily read but deep-reading eyes. She was the kind of person who always had a ready smile and there were times when seeing her out and about could brighten up my whole day.

"Evening, Gwen," Leon called as she came down the slope to join, a smile creeping onto his face: clearly this was one of those days that needed brightening. "What are you doing outside of Camelot so late?"

"I could ask you two the same thing," she replied, sitting down inelegantly on Leon's good side, a fact he didn't miss. "But I'm just picking flowers. Morgana gave me the rest of the day off after the tournament was done so I thought coming out here would be a good idea."

I just laughed. "You have more of a reason than we do," I responded, still chuckling. "I think the only reason we're out here is because we've both had a sudden onset of claustrophobia. Personally I just need some thinking space and Leon's hemmed in by his wrist. I don't know about you but there are times when I forget all this even exists." Gwen nodded sympathetically but Leon nodded in upset agreement. He looked like he was close to tears again but luckily Gwen hadn't noticed.

Suddenly, I heard a twig crack and my head shot up. Leon too was scanning the trees, searching for the offending movement. At least it had distracted him from his issues for a few minutes. Then I was ducking because there was a knife flying towards my head. With Gwen so close I didn't dare use magic but I knew I might have to because we were surrounded by ruffians with not a weapon between us.

One of them hauled Leon to his feet, deliberately twisting his broken wrist so that he had to bite down on a cry. Any more and he might pass out from the pain. Another pulled Gwen up and attempted to kiss her, before she slapped him across the jaw. That got her one in return, forcing her into submission. I was pulled up by my hair (which really hurt!) by the one who seemed to be in charge. I didn't struggle too much but I could feel him trying to undo the lace of my corset. Good luck, mate, go any further and you will die. That was my general thought path.

Then the one holding Leon twisted his arm slightly and, unable to bear it, the knight went limp where he stood. At least the guy had the decency to catch him. Gwen looked on, shocked, but I kicked the one holding me between the legs, drew his sword and ran him through. It was the work of half a minute to deal with the others.

"Come, brother," I whispered to the curious fox peeking round a tree at the commotion. "Dinner time." Gwen just looked shocked still but I ran to Leon, who wasn't coming round anytime soon. As such, I just sighed, picked him up in my arms and indicated that Gwen should lead, which she did with no fuss. That probably had something to do with her state of shock.

Did I mention that?

I could feel the horror I always felt after killing something or someone and I knew I'd be heading straight down to the Rising Sun when I was finished tending to Leon. With his luck, the wrist was probably twice as bad now as it had been before.

We didn't meet anyone besides the Lady Morgana, who'd gotten worried when Gwen hadn't come back when she said she would. She saw me holding Leon, who was limp, frowning and soaked with river-water and sweat and just followed, intending to do whatever she could to help me. It was hardly much but I appreciated the thought. It was easy to make him comfortable but not so easy to heal his wrist. The first twist had pushed the bone out of place and the second had broken the skin, which helped slightly because now I could see exactly what was wrong. Gaius came looking for me after a while and when he saw the state I was in, the look on his face was the one that demanded an explanation.

"Bandits," was all I needed to say and he completely understood. He knew exactly how I dealt with the problem of having killed someone and he just told me to get some air while he finished up with Leon. I was grateful for that: Leon's room was one of the larger ones but it still felt too close in there for me.

Once I was out in the night air, I felt a little better. A brisk walk cleared away the last dregs of the claustrophobia but the feeling of blade through flesh came back stronger than before. Three hours later, I returned almost completely hammered. I didn't slur or walk swerving, I just felt numb. I got in at nearly midnight and fell on my bed, passing out instantly.

The next morning, I woken by very loud noises downstairs. Clutching my pounding head, a good reminder of how drunk I had been the night before, I went downstairs to see what had happened.

What had happened was that someone had beaten the hell out of Sir Ewan. I didn't know him all that well, he was one of the more careful knights who didn't feel the need to sprain something once a fortnight, but I knew him well enough to say that he was a nice, non-confrontational man with a good clean fighting style. I was surprised to see him beaten so soon: he'd been one of the favourites for the final.

"Who was he fighting?" I asked, splashing my face with cold water and a quick spell to alleviate the pounding inside my skull.

"Sir Valiant," Merlin replied, with a suspicious glint in his eye. Which I quickly gained, because he didn't look like he'd been overcome in a duel. In fact, and I was by no means the expert, he looked like he'd been bitten by a snake. How on earth would that have happened?

"Is that the one with the yellow cape and violent fighting style?" I asked curiously. Personally, I wouldn't have thought he would win against someone like Ewan. Merlin just nodded and then Gaius confirmed my thoughts.

"This looks more like a snake bite to me," Gaius told us with an air of confusion about him. "He's displaying all the symptoms but how on earth could he have gotten it in a swordfight?" Then he noticed my frown. "Something wrong, Anna?"

I've been around magic for a very long time: Gaius is a warlock, though not hugely powerful and I of course am magical myself. So I can recognise the signs of magic a mile off and Sir Ewan stank of it: that sweet, cloying scent of pinewood. When I told them, Merlin immediately voiced his own thoughts and I wondered whether that was possible. Naturally, I hadn't attended the welcome banquet the night before, choosing to occupy my time by getting well and truly hammered, but I'd seen the three snakes on Sir Valiant's shield, and that was proof enough to me.

Coward.

I left Gaius and Merlin to bicker over what was to be done and went to see Leon. As I'd thought, he was still firmly unconscious (Gaius had given him some Essence of Belladonna, only diluted enough that he would sleep for about twelve hours) but Gwen was sat by his bedside. When I quietly slipped through the door, she turned, alarmed at first but reassured when she realised who it was.

"He looks bad," she told me quietly but I just smiled.

"He'll be fine within the month," I told her in return, giving Leon's splinted and bandaged wrist a quick examination. "Turns out re-breaking it has actually helped the healing process, there was a fragment of bone lodged in the joint but having his arm twisted yesterday has moved it out of the way. Gaius removed it last night after I left."

"That reminds me, how's the hangover?" I just laughed.

"Gwen, you should know by now, I don't get hangovers!"

"That's only because you drink too much." I just shrugged fair enough.

Leon came round at about lunchtime and he was completely fine, aside from the break. In fact, he was well enough to go down to watch the semi-finals with Gwen. I excused myself, saying I needed to help with Sir Ewan. Leon sent me a 'do-what-you-can' sort of look and I wondered if he was asking me to use magic. Unfortunately on that front, I didn't know any spells to heal a snake bite.

When I got back to Gaius' chambers, I got a shock. Sir Ewan was lying spread-eagled on the bed, with a fresh bite over his chest, deader than a dragon! I just screamed for Gaius, wondering if the snake was still here. There was nothing I could do for Sir Ewan, I could feel death rolling off him in waves. I hadn't had a hangover before but now I felt like I was going to be sick. I didn't know why, I'd seen death plenty of times, but this one just sickened me.

Maybe it was because magic was involved.

So the cheating Sir Valiant was going to fight Arthur in the final tomorrow morning. After the improvement in Arthur's fighting, I was sure, under fair conditions, he could win. But my certainty didn't extend to magic-wielding opponents.

I didn't question it when Merlin brought a stone dog to his – my old – room just before dusk. I had learned over the past few days that he normally had a reason behind what he did. What this action did was remind me that I needed to give Leon a sleeping draught, just so that he didn't roll onto his wrist during a dream and make it even worse. Once that was done and Leon was out like a candle, I went to bed.

The stress of yesterday and the feeling of killing three to be honest defenceless men made me stay in bed the next morning and for some reason Gaius didn't come and get me up. I wondered if he thought I'd gone out. I stayed in bed until past lunchtime, at which point Merlin replied, joyous at Arthur's victory. From his excited near-shouts as he talked to Gaius I gathered he had somehow exposed Valiant as a cheat and that Arthur had subsequently kicked his ass.

Good.

I went down to the training field and found Leon, Arthur fresh from his victory and a group of admiring knights. When the Prince saw who Leon was waving at, he actually smiled at me, which made me wonder whether he was still high from winning or whether some of those blows had made him forget how I'd defeated him. I didn't really care: I could do with some cheering up, seeing as I was kind of blue today for some reason.

Instantly I was sat down and treated to a blow-by-blow account of Arthur's match. There was a moment of silence for Sir Ewan and Arthur even recited a prayer of mourning, talking about how a good promising young man with so much to live for had been taken before his time. Despite my general dislike of the Pendragons, I found myself agreeing with every word he said.

Chapter Two, there we go. Sorry there isn't much show content, the next chapter will have a bit more. And for those of you thinking Leon's getting beaten up far too frequently, don't worry, he doesn't catch the plague thingy.

I plan to have one chapter for every episode, but that doesn't account for bits I add in, of which there will be many.

Happy reading and reviews please!

jack-damian