Chapter 1
'One more step...one more step...one more'.
The raven haired boy concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, to ensure no more missteps and as a result being dragged behind the horse. The more steps he took the louder the murmur of voices became. He continued his trudging along until he walked into the rump of the King's horse, who retaliated by flicking it's tail into the boy's face. Jerking back in surprise, he yelped as the slack from his restraints was used to also whip him across his prominent cheekbones.
Glancing up through the fringe of his bangs, he gasped. He had to bring his hands up to shield his eyes from the glare created by the sun reflecting off of the white stones of the castle of Camelot. Shifting his gaze, he looked over the surrounding knights heads and drunk in the sights and sounds of the bustling city. Women were dressed in vivid colors of red, blue, green and creams; men lead carts full of wares, towards the market square. The normalcy of their daily lives caused the corners of the boy's mouth to lift ever so slightly. The boy's eyes fell upon a girl who seemed to stand out from the others with her skin the color of freshly baked bread, her hair the color of rich earth formed in a spiraling mass, slightly pulled away from her face. She had a beauty mark on her face and a slight smile on her lips, as if thinking of a private joke.
His observation was cut short as the clopping of the horse shoes warned him of their advancing just in time that he didn't get jerked along by the Master. The procession wound their way through the city to the center point where another group waited on the castle steps. Careful to stop at the appropriate time, the boy discreetly glanced about him, ignoring the words spoken by the man on the steps wearing a crown, even as he came down to meet the King on the horse; who had dismounted already. They clasped forearms familiarly much to the surprise of the slave boy.
"Come, we have prepared a feast in your honor. Your horses will be attended to in the stables, your knights will be housed in the barracks and your servants shown to the servants' quarters."
Both kings headed up the steps until the tug on the rope brought the visiting King up short. With a snarl he gave a mighty yank, violently bringing the slave out of his musing; he crashed forward onto the stone steps. Wincing, he hurried to his feet, not wanting to draw more attention to himself.
"My Lord, perhaps Gaius should have a look at that one. He seems not completely there."
A young woman's voice spoke up for the first time, catching the slave's attention. The slave couldn't help the hope that filled his eyes in the briefest moment he met the young woman's eyes.
"Morgana, my ward, is right, Severus, Gaius is the Court Physician, he can look after the boy."
Glaring hatefully at the slave boy, he grudgingly relinquished his hold on the restraints to give them to one of his own servant's hands, who in turned handed it off to another servant from King Uther's household, this one a girl. The slave kept his eyes on the ground in an effort to avoid the wrath of his master. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw the rope change hands, and let out a small sigh of relief. He caught another movement as that Ulbein servant stepped up within a few steps behind King Severus, his head kept respectfully down. The slave ignored the haughty grin of the servant directed at him, preferring to not drawn any further attention to himself than necessary. Draco. The only one who despises me more than him is Alden. I do not see him though.
His eyes shifted furtively over the servants gathered around, and while he saw some with similarly colored hair, none bore the scar that was distinctive to the servant named Alden.
"Please, come this way."
The slave gave a start at the girl's voice. He took a few steps in her direction, following her with his head bowed in submission. The boy hunched his shoulders against the glare on his back. As he passed by the servant at his King's back, he winced as his shoulder made contact against his. Faintly, he heard a snort of derision in his direction, the slave boy made no move against him, seemingly trying to make himself an even smaller target.
"Come Severus, the hall is this way. Your servant will be watched and shall not escaped."
Their voices trailed off in the distance as each party moved in different directions. They had only made it a few steps inside the hall when another girl's voice called out, halting their progress.
"Sophia!"
No longer feeling the harden gaze of his master on his back, the boy finally dared to look up. Hurrying towards them was the girl with the beauty mark from before, in her arms was a heavy-looking basket laden with linens.
"Gwen?"
"Oh, thank heavens I found you. Maryanna, in the kitchens, has need of your help. Valoria has taken ill and they are short handed. You are to go at once, else they not be ready for the feast."
Sophia glanced at the boy who she was supposed to deliver to the court physician.
"But I am to take the boy to Gaius."
"No matter, I will take him, please just hurry."
Hesitating for a moment, Sophia placed the rope over the basket and scurried off, with her hem held aloft so that she was make haste to the kitchens. Gwen glanced at the boy, noticing for the first time his shackled hands and the rope leading from them to the end piece. With an effort, Gwen shifted her hold in order to reach for the rope. Unbalanced, the load tipped and with it her body, a cry of surprise burst from the girl's mouth.
"Woah-! Careful there."
One arm braced her up while the other managed to grasped one side of the basket, just barely preventing it from toppling completely over. In an instant Gwen pulled back, gaining her footing again. Her eyes searched his, before they widened as they gazed at his hands, the shackle dangling off the other.
"Wha-? Your hands...how...?"
Confused, the boy looked down to see what she was looking at, his face drained of what little color he had.
"Ah...um...If you apply pressure at a certain spot, the hinge will give way...yeah."
In an effort to reassure the wary girl, he adjusted his grip on the basket to where he reapplied the other shackle, barely able to hold the basket on the forearms of his bound hands.
"Oh, let me take that back..."
"No, no. I've got this."
"Are, are you sure? I mean, can you carry it?"
"Of course, why?"
"Well, it's just that, one stiff wind looks like it could blow you over."
The boy blinked, his brow furrowed at the implication. Seeing his reaction, the girl was quick to correct her words.
"I-I mean, it is rather heavy, and your hands are bound, and well it IS heavy."
"Exactly, and as such, a lady should not be made to be burdened with such a heavy weight."
"But-"
"And seeing as it is heavy, and getting heavier by the minute, I might add, perhaps it would be wise to make our way to the physician...?"
At his prompting the girl started leading the way, following a dizzying amounts of twist and turns they came to a descending stairwell. Glancing around, the slave noted that several other servant were dashing through the halls, their faces tense with concentration; their footfalls echoed throughout the hallway, a strange sort of stacco against the solid ground.
A soft breeze tugged at the boy's shirt, pulling one way then reversing in the opposite direction. All was silent. No more were there any footsteps, or murmur of voices. Sound seemed unable to penetrate their little section, it prickled at the boy's mind begging for notice but receiving none.
Gwen easily descended, holding the hem of her dress up so that she didn't trip on it. Angling his head over and around the linens, the boy carefully chose his steps, being mindful of the steepness of the descent and the steps. Three quarters of the way down, the boy's foot caught on the dangling rope; Gwen having not taken possession of it after dropping it the first time. The tension pitched him forward, with a yelp followed by grunts, his body impact the stairs until he landed with an explosion of air. His vision wavered, creating moving shadows in the hallway. His body screamed in pain, mixing his vocal scream and Gwen's audibly higher pitched scream. The maidservant had been quick enough with her own footing that she was well out of the way of the boy's descent.
"HELP! Oh, someone help!"
The vibrations of many footfalls thundered in the boy's ears like some sort of torturous laughter; the effort of lifting his eyelids that had clamped close against the pain, too much. It was as if someone had pulled the plug out of the air and sound was again allowed to rush back in. He should have noticed but instead content to just sink into oblivion...'The only freedom I have, is in death'.
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A/N End: Things are just starting to pick up, and with it longer chapters and more plot foreshadowing. I am a bit long winded in the sense, that I like to build and craft these to a point where I hope I don't loose your interest before the real fun begins.
H.D.S